State Aims To Attract Fresh Investments And Create Jobs By Clearing Liabilities Of Defunct Textile Units
The Odisha Cabinet has approved a ₹200 crore budgetary provision to clear outstanding liabilities of closed cooperative spinning mills and powerloom units, a move aimed at accelerating investments in the state’s textile and apparel sector while creating a large industrial land bank for future projects.
The decision forms part of Odisha’s broader strategy to position itself as a major textile and apparel manufacturing hub at a time when several traditional textile centres across India are facing labour shortages, rising production costs, and capacity constraints.
State officials believe the move will help unlock valuable industrial land currently tied up in financially distressed textile units and attract both domestic and international manufacturers looking for new production destinations.
Clearing Legacy Liabilities
The approved package will address long-pending liabilities linked to defunct units operating under the Odisha State Cooperative Spinning Mills Federation Ltd (SPINFED).
According to Chief Secretary Anu Garg, liabilities amounting to ₹361.67 crore have been identified across spinning mills, powerloom units, and one sizing unit spread across approximately 261.2 acres of land.
The Cabinet has approved ₹200 crore as the first installment to facilitate one-time settlements with creditors and financial institutions.
Once the settlement process is completed, legal and financial hurdles surrounding the land parcels will be removed, enabling their transfer to the Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) for industrial use.
The government intends to use the land primarily for employment-intensive textile, garment, and apparel manufacturing projects.
Odisha’s Textile Ambitions Gather Momentum
For decades, Odisha has been a major supplier of migrant workers to textile clusters in states such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Maharashtra.
The state government now hopes to reverse this trend by creating employment opportunities closer to home.
Over the past few years, Odisha has aggressively pursued investments in textiles and apparel through dedicated industrial policies, attractive incentives, improved logistics infrastructure, and sector-specific industrial parks.
The state has announced textile and apparel clusters across districts including Balangir, Keonjhar, Sambalpur, Jagatsinghpur, Ganjam, and Cuttack.
At the Odisha TEX 2025 summit, the government unveiled six textile and apparel parks along with two footwear parks featuring plug-and-play infrastructure designed to reduce project implementation timelines.
₹7,808 Crore Investment Commitments
The state’s efforts have already begun attracting significant investor interest.
During Odisha TEX 2025, the government secured investment proposals worth ₹7,808 crore from 33 companies with the potential to generate more than 53,300 jobs.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has set an ambitious target of creating over one lakh jobs in the textile and apparel sector by 2030.
Several leading textile and apparel companies have announced investments in the state, including Page Industries, KPR Mill, Sportking India, First Step Babywear, and multiple garment manufacturing firms.
Industry observers view Odisha as one of the emerging destinations for textile investments due to its improving infrastructure, availability of workforce, and supportive policy framework.
Major Textile Projects Underway
Among the key projects currently under development is the integrated textile and apparel park at Choudwar, which is expected to attract substantial investments and generate thousands of jobs.
Global apparel manufacturer Epic Group has already established a manufacturing facility in Khurda district with an investment of $100 million. The Hong Kong-based company supplies garments to several international fashion brands and plans to invest an additional $150 million in a technical textiles unit.
Page Industries, the exclusive licensee for Jockey and Speedo in India, has invested ₹750 crore in a large apparel manufacturing facility at Ramdaspur in Cuttack district. The project is expected to create over 5,500 jobs and marks the company’s first major manufacturing expansion outside Karnataka.
Meanwhile, Hindalco Industries has signed agreements to establish two apparel manufacturing units in Keonjhar and Sambalpur with a combined investment of ₹200 crore. These projects are expected to generate around 2,400 direct jobs, particularly for women and local youth.
What The Move Means For Odisha
The Cabinet’s decision to clear liabilities of closed textile units is expected to remove a major bottleneck in the state’s industrial expansion plans.
By unlocking over 261 acres of industrial land and facilitating fresh investments, the initiative could accelerate Odisha’s emergence as a leading textile and apparel manufacturing destination.
For the state government, the objective goes beyond industrial growth. The larger goal is to create sustainable employment opportunities, reduce migration, strengthen manufacturing capabilities, and build a competitive textile ecosystem capable of attracting global and domestic players alike.
