The Indian manmade fiber industry is passing through a tough phase as the substantially high excise duty provides an edge to Chinese producers to dump polyester fibers in India.

Domestically produced synthetic yarn is losing market share to cheaper imported yarn from China, Vietnam and Bangladesh. Imports of fibers, filament yarn and spun yarns of polyester increased over 18 per cent in 2014-15 compared to the previous year. These imports were predominantly from China.

So the industry wants the excise duty on domestically-produced synthetic yarn to be scrapped. The reasoning is that the excise duty is unfair discrimination between cotton and synthetic fiber and is distorting the textile market in favor of cotton, which is the opposite of the global trend.

The global textile and clothing industry can be broadly divided into natural fiber and manmade fiber industry. The natural fiber industry includes cotton, wool, silk and jute; while the manmade fiber industry includes polyamides, polyester, polyethylene, viscose and acrylic.

Over the years, the clothing pattern in India has shifted. Men's clothing consumption has moved from the traditional cotton based wear to synthetic fabrics. Cotton dhotis are giving way to trousers mostly made of polyester or polyester blends. Likewise women are moving from cotton saris to synthetic saris or dresses.