New Delhi: The government indicated on Tuesday that forthcoming foreign trade policy (FTP) may grant some sops for the ailing textile sector especially exporters, who were disappointed over the Budget proposals yesterday.

“I will be interacting with the industry... after two months the FTP will come so whatever is not here (in the Budget), they (exporters) might get some shelter in the FTP,” textile minister Dayanidhi Maran said.

The FTP is set to be unveiled in August.

He said the Budget proposals should be read with the three stimulus packages announced earlier to boost exports and called the Budget “a growth spurring initiatives which dovetail with economic revival, infrastructure development, agriculture development, inclusive growth and restoring export growth”.

The Budget has allocated Rs4,500 crore for the sector. Funds worth Rs3,140 crore have been assigned under technology upgradation fund scheme, while for the scheme for integrated Textile Park (SITP) Rs397 crore has been given.

Maran also said the announcement of setting up of five mega clusters will generate employment for 50,000 people and attract an investment of about Rs1,400 crore.

One handloom cluster each in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu and one powerloom mega cluster in Rajasthan and two mega clusters for carpets at Srinagar and Mirzapur, would be set up in 18-36 months, he said.

Maran said for the first time, significance has been given to the textile export sector in the Budget. “Whatever we have asked, a lot has been accommodated (in the Budget).”

He said in coming days, “We have a huge task cut out before us to utilise the provisions of the Budget for making our sector go from strength-to-strength.”

When asked about the textile export target for the current fiscal, the minister said, the target is to achieve 7-8% growth in the current fiscal.

The country’s textile exports declined by about 10% in 2008-09 to about $20 billion compared to the previous fiscal due to slump in demand from global economies like the US and Europe, he had said earlier.

Having grown by over 11% in the first six months of 2008-09, the textile exports started falling in October ending the fiscal with overall decline of 10%.

The industry is the second largest employer after agriculture employing 35 million people.