Giriraj Singh, the Union Minister of Textiles, has accused the Punjab Government of not supporting Ludhiana’s textile sector because it lacks policies that are conducive to growth.
Speaking to the media in Ludhiana, the Minister said that Punjab’s refusal to participate in the PM MITRA scheme, which aims to build integrated, expansive textile parks with top-notch infrastructure to support the Indian textile industry and increase its competitiveness internationally, is a sad state.
He stated that with a first investment of US $ 115 million (Rs. 1000 crore), the Centre wished to offer this initiative to Punjab for the textile sector situated in Ludhiana. One lakh more jobs may have been created as a result, but it appears the State Government wants to dismantle the textile sector here.
Despite being in Ludhiana for two days, the Union minister said his attempts to speak with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann over industrial welfare had failed. He further claimed that he was not met by any top state industry agency officials.
Sanjeev Arora, a Rajya Sabha MP, denied the Union Minister’s accusations in the meantime. He went on to say, “The industrial sector has benefited greatly from the AAP Government.”
In response to protests by campaigners against the plan to establish a textile park along the Sutlej River, the Punjab Government abandoned the project in July 2022 at Koom Kalan village, which is close to the Mattewara forest.
