Over 1,000 small and medium garment business owners in Mumbai are mulling over relocating operations to Gujarat’s Kutch district. Most of them are Kutchi Patels, a farming community, and plan to set up a garment business park in Kutch. An online survey by the Garment Manufacturers’ Welfare Association in Mumbai has evoked a positive response to the idea.
Association president Anil Gami said it is getting difficult to operate in Mumbai after the COVID-19 uncertainty, high cost of maintenance, rent, labour and overall cost of operations. Many of these entrepreneurs have farmlands, which is an added attraction after Narmada Canal accessibility, he was quoted as saying by media reports.Over 1,000 small and medium garment business owners in Mumbai are mulling over relocating operations to Gujarat's Kutch district. Most of them are Kutchi Patels, a farming community, and plan to set up a garment business park in Kutch. An online survey by the Garment Manufacturers' Welfare Association in Mumbai has evoked a positive response to the idea.#
The labour-intensive garment making industry in Mumbai is dominated by entrepreneurs from Kutch. Santacruz, Khar, Dadar, Kalyan and Bhiwandi are some of the pockets, where about 3,000 such micro, small and medium garment units are concentrated.
The units employ migrant workers from Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar. The garment industry cluster is well-integrated with allied businesses such as making of accessories, thread, dyeing, printing and embroidery.
Kutch offers the same benefits of Mumbai in terms of accessibility, logistics, air-rail-road connectivity.
Gami said the association will soon approach the Gujarat government to explore what kind of suitable incentives or support it can extend to relocate such large number of units from outside Gujarat to Kutch. To source fabric from the textile hubs, the garment players are looking to engage with textile mills in Ahmedabad, Surat and Ludhiana in Punjab to secure supplies.
The idea is to have a business vertical that includes yarn manufacturing to readymade garments in the park. The businessmen settled in Mumbai are capable of investing in Kutch, Gami added.
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