MITRA parks guidelines in 30-45 days: Textile secretary

The government will issue the guidelines for the Prime Minister’s Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel (MITRA) scheme in the next 30-45 days , textile secretary Upendra Prasad Singh told ET.
The textiles ministry will first notify the scheme and issue the guidelines in the next one to one-and-a-half months after which, states would submit their preliminary project reports.

Under the MITRA scheme, special purpose vehicles (SPVs) will be set up with 49% central government stake and 51% holding by the respective state which would own the mega parks. However, these will be given on a 50-year lease to the master developer.

“The master developer will execute the projects and a concession agreement would be signed with the SPV. We are confident that foreign companies too will invest,” Singh said, adding that the entire process needs to be completed by 2026.

Singh said multiple states were keen to set up such parks, but were yet to indicate their preference.

“While states have evinced interest, no state has clearly said if their parks will be greenfield or brownfield,” he said

The states would be judged on criteria such as connectivity with industrial corridors, their textile and industrial policies, and labour laws, the secretary said.

Singh said that under the existing Scheme for Integrated Textile Park (SITP), 66 parks were sanctioned, of which 10 were cancelled but the rest will be completed.