The Southern India Mills Association (SIMA) has hailed the Tamil Nadu Budget 2025-26 as a pioneering effort to boost the global competitiveness of the textile and clothing (T&C) sector. SIMA Chairman S K Sundararaman expressed gratitude to Chief Minister M K Stalin for introducing industry-focused initiatives with necessary budget allocations.

Sundararaman also thanked Handlooms and Textiles Minister R Gandhi and Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu for advocating key measures to support the T&C industry, which accounts for one-third of the country's textile manufacturing capacity. He highlighted that Tamil Nadu's textile sector, contributing 45 per cent of spinning, 22 per cent of powerlooms, 12 per cent of handlooms, and over 60 per cent of cotton knitted garments in India, has faced serious challenges in recent years.

The budget includes Rs 30 crore for modernizing powerlooms over three years old into shuttleless looms, improving productivity and earnings. Additionally, Rs 50 crore over five years will establish common facility centers with fully automatic computerized fabric cutting machines for garment and made-ups clusters like Tiruppur, Karur, and Chennai, enhancing fabric realization by up to 10 per cent and reducing production costs.

SIMA also welcomed the Rs 15 crore allocation for the Tamil Nadu Technical Textile Mission to promote diversification and investment in the emerging technical textiles sector. Another Rs 20 crore has been set aside for loom sheds, common facilities, and quality testing labs to support powerloom exports.

Sundararaman lauded the budget as a model for other states, emphasizing its focus on modernization, value addition, and global competitiveness.