What happened

India’s textile and apparel exports, including handicrafts, showed modest growth in 2025–26. The Ministry of Textiles said exports touched ₹3,25,339.0 crore, up 1.8 per cent from the previous year, even as global demand fluctuated and input costs moved unevenly.

The Ministry of Textiles also said exports grew in more than 100 destinations and that Madhya Pradesh and Bihar recorded export activity from the textile and apparel sector. The statement places textiles within a wider export-competitiveness strategy rather than a single-year sales update.

Background and earlier position

The textile sector has long been a major export earner and employment generator for India. The policy framework around the sector combines production incentives, cluster development, export rebates, skills, and trade access.

The release lists several ongoing government instruments: PM Mega Integrated Textile Regions and Apparel (PM MITRA) Parks Scheme, Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme, National Technical Textiles Mission, SAMARTH, Silk Samagra-2, National Handloom Development Programme, National Handicrafts Development Programme, Comprehensive Handicrafts Cluster Development Scheme, Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) Scheme, Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) Scheme, Export Promotion Mission (EPM), and Credit Guarantee Scheme for Exporters (CGSE).

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