Exporters facing doomsday need support, says Vijay

CHENNAI: Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) president and actor Vijay on Sunday warned that Tamil Nadu exporters would face severe disruption following the 50 per cent tariff imposed by the United States on Indian goods.

In a statement, Vijay said the new tariff had hit exporters “very hard” and placed the livelihoods of lakhs of workers at risk.

“Tamil Nadu has always been central to India’s export economy, contributing nearly 10 per cent of the country’s exports. Industries such as textiles, garments, leather, footwear, automobiles, auto parts, machinery, chemicals, electronics, seafood, and jewellery sustain lakhs of families. With the new tariff, exporters are forced to abandon orders as competing Asian countries, including Bangladesh, are not subject to the same duty,” he said.

Vijay added that American buyers were avoiding Indian goods, leading to job losses in garment factories in Tirupur, export units in Coimbatore, leather clusters in Vellore and among fishermen exporting seafood.

“Factories are shutting down and workers are under threat of losing their livelihoods,” he said, urging both the Union and State governments to intervene.

Criticising the Union government for not acting despite projecting itself as the “voice of the global south,” Vijay said the DMK-led State government was only focused on promotional events without a plan to safeguard exporters. He cited reports of seafood shipments from Thoothukudi being returned mid-sea due to the duty as an example of the crisis. The TVK leader put forward a set of demands to save export-oriented industries.