CHENNAI: Garment factories in Tirupur, dubbed the "Garment Capital of South India," will close their doors from May 16 to 21 in protest of rising cotton yarn prices.

After the Centre reduced the import duty on cotton, the price of cotton yarn has climbed by Rs 40 per kilogramme. The Tirupur Garment Owners Association issued a statement on Tuesday calling for a strike.

The garment units, largely exporters, are concerned that the increase in cotton yarn costs will harm their company, thus they will organise a six-day demonstration as a show of dissent. The garment industry in Tirupur has a yearly turnover of over Rs 36,000 crore.

Sharing concern before the media, M.P. Muthuraman, president of the Tirupur Garment Owners Association, said:-  "In November 2021, cotton mills raised the price of yarn by Rs 50 per kilogramme, bringing the total price to Rs 350 per kilogramme. We expected yarn prices to decline after the Indian government reduced the import duty on cotton, but mills have increased them by Rs 40 per kilogramme, which we cannot afford. We have no choice except to shut down our businesses as a form of protest." "We urge the Union government ban on the export of cotton yarn until the price stabilises," Raja Shanmugham, head of the Tirupur Exporters Association (TEA), stated. He believes that dealers in North India may be hoarding cotton, resulting in a scarcity of the product.

India’s non-basmati rice exports seen an astounding growth of 109 pc, says Piyush Goyal

Indonesia began imposing a complete ban on palm oil exports

FOREX-dollar is reaching a 20-year high, while euro struggles