NAMAKKAL: Tamil Nadu is making efforts to convince the Central government to fully exempt handloom textiles from the purview of GST, just as the Khadi sector has been exempted in the weavers’ interests, the State minister for Handlooms and Textiles, Mr. O.S. Manian said on Sunday.
Speaking to reporters after participating in a private function here, he said though the GST rate for handloom sector has been reduced from 12 per cent to five per cent in a bid to make handloom weaving sustainable for the vast majority of poor weavers under the cooperative sector, “we are making every effort to completely exempt handlooms from the purview of GST.”
Mr. Manian said it was lower GST rate which was helping the garment and hosiery sector in Tirupur to achieve an annual sales turnover of Rs 40,000 crore. Tamil Nadu has 1,081 weavers’ cooperative societies in all, the minister said, adding, with a view to encourage the handloom sector several concessions were like interest subsidy continued to be extended.
