CHENNAI: India’s textile industry is reeling from a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) shortage triggered by the war in West Asia, with major hubs from Surat to Karur reporting shutdowns, raw material shortages and export delays.
In Gujarat’s Surat, one of the country’s largest textile centres, nearly 200 processing units have shut down while others have scaled back operations from seven days to five, an NHK report said.
The disruption has hit livelihoods hard, with around five lakh daily wage workers losing jobs and migrating out of Surat.
Also, a city-based fibre unit that consumes 13.2 tonnes of LPG a month has shut for a month due to the shortage, laying off over half its daily wage workers, the report added.
The impact is equally severe in Tamil Nadu’s Karur, a key textile export hub, where the crisis has disrupted imports of polyester fibre. With Gulf-based factories shut and cargo shipments delayed, raw material shortages have stalled production.
Finished goods such as table linen, curtains and bedspreads are piling up, with exports worth thousands of crores delayed to markets in the US and Europe, according to a Maalaimalar report. The Karur textile sector, with an annual turnover of around Rs 10,000 crore, is under significant strain.
Meanwhile, polyester fibre prices have surged nearly 40%, from Rs 112 per kg before the crisis, squeezing exporters already bound by pre-agreed contracts. Many are now supplying at older rates, incurring heavy losses.
With shipments stalled and costs rising, the crisis threatens the livelihoods of lakhs of workers.
Industry stakeholders have urged the Centre to intervene, stabilise prices, address supply disruptions or provide alternative fuel options to keep operations running, and to safeguard the textile sector.