In Tirupur, garment manufacturers and Government officials have come forward against the fake news spread by some TV channels and websites since they were running a negative campaign claiming that several units in the district had sold their machinery for scrap due to lack of orders.
The video clip of the story was widely circulated in Tamil Nadu.
KM Subramanian, President, Tiruppur Exporters Association (TEA) described the clip as “complete fake news”. He said that the no manufacturer would throw away machinery and other goods for scrap. These videos are highly condemnable.
Associations accept that the apparel sector is going through tough times due to several factors but that does not mean manufacturers have sold machinery. Several global issues caused financial losses to the garment industry in the leading knitted garment hub, orders declined for many units whereas imports from Bangladesh surged. But that doesn’t mean, garment units have thrown away machinery for scrap.
Associations do have the sense that no unit compromises on quality and uses top-quality sewing, embroidery, padlock machines and printing machines. High-end sewing machines cost around Rs. 30-40,000. Even if they become old, the users repair and reuse them again.
M P Muthurathinam, President, Tirupur Exporters and Manufacturer Association (TEAMA) confirmed the same.
As per a report of New Indian Express, a leading English daily, an official from the textile department of Tamil Nadu said that Tamil television channel telecast a news claiming that garment manufacturers in Tirupur are throwing away machinery for scrap. But the news item didn’t specify the exact number of machines discarded nor name the scrap dealers in Tirupur city. Besides, there are several thousand tailoring machines in garment units. Some old machines might have been discarded, but that doesn’t reflect the real picture.
