Apparel parks in Bangalore, Bellary planned

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE, MAY 11. Two apparel parks - with all the infrastructure required to give a boost to the garment industry - will be set up on Doddballapur Road on the outskirts of the City, and in Bellary, with an investment of Rs. 23 crores, the Textiles and Sericulture Minister, Mr. M. Mahadev, has said.

He told presspersons here today that the apparel park in Bangalore would be allotted 150 acres and the one in Bellary, 50 acres. The State Government would invest Rs. 5 crores in the project, a joint venture with the Union Government. Asked about the usefulness of setting up apparel parks in view of the recession in the garment industry, he said the idea was to strengthen the industry by providing all facilities at one place.

School uniforms: Mr. Mahadev said that the Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation (KHDC) would supply 39.87 lakh sets of uniforms to school children by the end of June. Of the Rs. 35.27 crores required for the uniforms, the Corporation had already received Rs. 20.27 crores from the Education Department.

The Secretary, Department of Textiles, Mr. R. Suresh, and the KHDC Managing Director, Mr. Perumal, said the size, quality and colour of the uniforms would be verified by a technical committee.

Mr. Perumal said the Education Department had agreed to pay Rs. 53 lakhs which it had withheld last year if the Corporation supplied the uniforms on time this year.

Mr. Mahadev said the Chief Minister, Mr. S. M. Krishna, had directed the public sector undertakings such as KPTCL and KSRTC, Health and Police Departments which were sourcing their requirements of uniforms from private companies, to purchase uniforms from the KHDC. The Corporation had already received an order worth Rs. 3 crores.

Mr. Mahadev, who attended the conference of textile ministers in New Delhi recently, said the Centre had been urged to raise the duty on silk imported from Japan and China to 45 per cent and ensure that only quality silk was allowed into the country.

Bannari Sugars: On the closure of the Bannari Sugar Factory, Mr. Mahadev, who is also the minister in charge of Chamarajanagar District, said he would not allow the sugarcane growers to suffer and a solution would be found. He would soon convene a meeting of the factory management, officials of the Sugar Directorate and leaders of the farmers to discuss the matter, he added.

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