Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC), the apparel industry body is expecting around Rs 5,000 crores fresh investments into the sector during the current fiscal which may create as many as two million jobs in India. Describing the Rs 6,000-crore textile booster package announced by the government late last month as a ‘game-changer,’ AEPC Chairman Ashok G Rajani said that based on initial feedback he has received, around Rs 5,000 crores may flow into the industry in fresh capex this fiscal year itself.

According to Rajani, this additional investment into the apparel sector, which has not seen any investments for years, alone can create as many as two million jobs this year. The impetus will be on the near-doubling of the capital subsidy to 25 per cent of one's investment. Responding to whether the industry will be able to meet the government's target of creating 10 million jobs and $30 billion in export earnings by 2020, Rajani said that without any doubt, it is very much doable.

Rajani, who runs a company, Flair Exports said his company will be setting up a new factory this year itself and is scouting for the right location. The factory will be in Navi Mumbai and he needs Rs 6-7 crore to open the new factory with 250 machines. Meanwhile, the Cabinet, on June 22, cleared Rs 6,000-crore incentive package for the textiles and apparel sector to create one crore new jobs over the next three years, and attract investments worth $11 billion and generating $30 billion in exports.