CHENNAI: In a move to attract non-leather footwear manufacturing companies to Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday unveiled the Tamil Nadu Footwear and Leather Products Policy, 2022, offering various incentives such as capital, land, transport and training subsidies and refunds on SGST (State Goods and Services Tax) to industries.
The policy, which also offers incentives to MSMEs and footwear and leather products design centres, aims to attract Rs 20,000 crore investment and create two lakh jobs by 2025, the CM said.Speaking at a Footwear and Leather Sector conclave held in Chennai, the CM said the government wants to ensure that employment-intensive sectors too receive investment alongside capital-intensive industries.
The State government on Tuesday signed five memoranda of understanding (MoUs) at the event for a total investment of Rs 2,250 crore. The new projects to come up in Perambalur and Ranipet districts have the potential to create around 37,000 new jobs.“By setting up labour-intensive industries in underdeveloped regions, per capita income in those regions can be improved and economic prosperity can be ensured,” the CM said.
While Tamil Nadu is one of the leading players in manufacturing leather footwear, non-leather products make up 80% of share of sale in global footwear market. Currently, non-leather footwear made in the country are heavily dependent on components from China and other countries.
Tamil Nadu government officials said efforts are on to create a local ecosystem to supply components for manufacturing synthetic footwear.There is big potential for footwear manufacturing and the policy will create a manufacturing ecosystem that will help Tamil Nadu become a footwear export hub in the coming years, V Noushad, MD, Walkaroo International, said.
Kothari Industrial Corporation, which has signed MoUs to set up two non-leather footwear manufacturing facilities and a component manufacturing cluster, has partnered with Taiwan-based Phoenix Accord and China-based SEMS group to bring in technology and expertise. “There is a supply chain shift from China, and US and European brands are looking at India as a better option. This offers huge opportunity for India, especially Tamil Nadu,” said Rafiq Ahamed, Managing Director of Kothari Investment Corporation. Huge employable labour force and low manufacturing cost favour the State, he said.
Industry sources said global brands are shifting from China or expanding manufacturing units in other countries due to geopolitics and supply chain issues. Despite competition from a few countries, vendors prefer India and at least eight new projects are coming up in traditional leather industry hubs of the State, sources said.
India stands to gain
Industry sources said global brands are shifting from China or expanding manufacturing units in other countries due to geopolitics and supply chain issues. Despite competition from a few countries, vendors prefer India, according to sources