ReturnThe Federation of Indian Art Silk Weaving Industry (FIASWI) has raised concerns over a substantial rise in the import of cheap silk fabrics from Vietnam in a pre-budget memorandum to finance minister Arun Jaitley. The import of silk fabrics from Vietnam at present attracts zero per cent duty, making India’s indigenous silk fabric products costlier.
The federation had earlier expressed its worry over cheap import of synthetic filament fabrics from China.
The condition of silk fabric manufacturers in Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Bhagalpur in Bihar, Bengaluru in Karnataka, parts of Tamil Nadu and Surat in Gujarat has worsened over the last two years due to a significant increase in such imports, according to FIASWI chairman Bharat Gandhi.
Vietnam and Bangladesh are in India’s most favoured nation (MFN) list with a provision to have free trade of major textile commodities where silk fabrics are also included, a top English-language newspaper quoted Gandhi as saying.
FIASWI has urged the government to impose a safeguard duty of 10 per cent on the import of silk fabrics from Vietnam to provide a level-playing field to local manufacturers.
The import from Vietnam has increased more than two-fold from 2 lakh square metres in 2015-16 to 5 lakh square metres in 2016-17, Gandhi said.
Many Chinese manufacturers have started their factories in Vietnam and dump silk fabrics in India at cheaper rates, he added. (DS)
