Date:27/06/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/06/27/stories/2006062703811900.htm

Back AEPC to set up 4 training institutes

Dhimant Bhatt

Mumbai , June 26

With the intention of bringing in investments and creating more jobs, the Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC is setting up four Apparel Training & Design Centres (ATDCs) in the next three months.

The centres will conduct various training courses on garment manufacturing at the shop floor level for the garment industry. The new institutes would be set up at Kanpur, Bhubaneshwar, Surat and Andhra Pradesh.

The council now runs 13 centres in Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Ludhiana, Jaipur, Indore, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Tiruvananthapuram, Tirupur and Mumbai.

More FDI inflow

"My highest priorities at AEPC are Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into the country and creation of more job opportunities in the garment sector by setting up manpower training," Mr Vijay Kumar Agarwal, Chairman, AEPC, told Business Line. AEPC has the responsibility of monitoring garment export quotas and promotion of exports of readymade garments from the country.

`Five million jobs'

"There is an opportunity to create another five million jobs. Currently, it is estimated that the industry employs about three million people. Textile industry accounts for a third of the country's industrial employment and a quarter of its foreign exchange earnings. Considering this, the industry can grow leaps and bounds in the next 10 years. The high-end of the industry can use educated capital in design and marketing," Mr Agarwal said.

"Textile industry should attract highest priority by the policy makers as it not only brings foreign exchange but also creates tremendous job opportunities. FDI will not be effective unless we have rational labour policies. Just to reach $25 billion in the next 5 years, an investment of Rs 30,000-40,000 crore is needed which is possible only if we are able to attract FDI in the apparel sector," Mr Agarwal said.