Indian textile industry is competitive with best in world

Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal has  said that India and Sweden should work together to build a more resilient and strong partnership. Speaking at the CEO Forum of India-Sweden strategic business partnership, Goyal said that the year 2020 has been a challenging year, but we should convert this crisis into an opportunity. Talking about Atma Nirbhar Bharat, he said that under it, the government is encouraging import of high-tech products, encouraging people to bring technologies, skills, better qualities of healthcare and education to India.  Goyal said that the government will look for Sweden and European Union also opening its doors a little wider, removing some of the non-tariff barriers or standards, so that there is reciprocity in our trade with Sweden and  Europe and expansion of business on both sides.The Minister said that India, with 1.35 billion people, provides one of the world's largest business opportunities. Goyal said that he is sure that Swedish companies would like to work in India and explore better opportunities. 

-Textiles Minister Smriti Zubin Irani has said that Indian textile industry has not only expanded in size but it is also competitive with the best in the world in terms of cost. Addressing a webinar on Atmanirbhar Bharat on Friday, Ms Irani said, the industry and Government came together during COVID-19 pandemic. She said, there were zero PPE kit manufacturers during the beginning of the pandemic and now there are 11 hundred companies. Similarly, there were two N95 mask manufacturers and now there are 200 companies. The Minister said, Indian textile industry worked very closely with the Government during the pandemic. Textiles Secretary Ravi Capoor said, the growth of the PPE industry during the COVID-19 crisis is an example of what collaborative efforts between the State and the industry can achieve. 

-India on Friday said Chinese action along the Line of Actual Control ( LAC) in the last six months is in violation of the bilateral agreements and protocols ensuring peace and tranquility. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the situation which has been witnessed  since the last six months is the result of actions by Chinese side which has sought to effect a unilateral change in status along LAC in eastern Ladakh. He said both sides need to strictly follow the various bilateral agreements and protocols in their entirety, including the 1993 and 1996 agreements on maintenance of peace and tranquility along the border area. He added that India strictly observes bilateral agreements and is committed to resolve border issues through talks. The spokesperson was reacting on Chinese comments over the border issue.

-The Madras High Court has quashed the Income Tax proceedings against the Congress Member of Parliament Karti Chidambaram and his spouse. The case relates to an alleged non-disclosure of a part of the income accrued through the disposal of a property in the year 2015-16. The single judge Bench accepted the review plea filed by Karti and his wife saying the authority, who sanctioned the proceedings against the accused, was not the competent authority to initiate the reassessment proceedings.Earlier, another single judge Bench of the High Court dismissed the plea of the accused seeking to quash the proceedings. They filed a review plea later.

-The ninth edition of the Sustainable Mountain Development Summit (SMDS) in Dehradun has begun on Friday. The theme for this year is Emerging Pathways for Building a Resilient Post COVID-19 Mountain Economy, Adaptation, Innovation and Acceleration. The summit will focus on the overall objective of building pathways toward a resilient and sustainable mountain economy in the context of a post COVID-19 scenario and Climate Change. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat and Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma attended the function. Sangma congratulated the organisers for hosting this summit as a platform to raise specific concerns of the Himalayan region. Rawat emphasized the need for such summits and the coming together of every stakeholder of the mountain community to push forward the mountain agenda in the bigger national and international forums.