Centre chalks out new plan to enhance export to US

Chennai, Jan 30 (UNI) With an aim to create employment for one million people, the Union Governmnet has chalked out a new plan to enhance export to United States by 2010.

Addressing media, Council for Leather Exports (CLE) Director, K Elongavan said with an year-on-year growth at 7.98 per cent the export of leather and related products from India reached an all time high of USD 2.7 billion during 2005-2006, compared to USD 2.5 billion in the previous financial year.

"Keeping in view the past performace, current trends in the global trade, industry's inherent strengths and the growth prospects, the industry aims to augment the production and therby enhance export USD 7 billion by 2010-2011, resulting in creation of additional employment opportunities about one million people", he added.

The export of leather goods and its related products would surpass the target of USD 3 billion during the current fiscal, he said.

Mr Elongavan said the positive growth in exports was continuing in the first six months of the current year too, with export during April-September 2006 reaching USD 1490.54 million, as against the previous year's performance of USD 1387.51 million.

"The Centre is also devising a new plan to increase skilled manpower and upgradation of techniques in the leather industries to compete at the highest-level," he said adding new training programmes would be introduced in different leather institutes across the country.

Asked about the international competition in leather industry, Dr Elangovan pointed out countries like Hong Kong and Thailand were evincing more interest in buying Indian leather products due to the high quality.

Besides, many countries were trying to shift their manufacturing facilities to India from major leather exporting nations like Romania and Spain due to rising costs.

UNI