Surat's textile industry is set to add between 10,000 and 15,000 new air-jet loom machines over the next year, as the Gujarat government pushes technology adoption, value addition, and export-led growth to cement the city's standing as a global textile manufacturing hub. The announcement came on Saturday, 18 July at the Secure Airjet Weavers Association's Weavers' Paramarsh Sammelan held at Saniya Hemad in Surat.

Scale of the Expansion

Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi said the planned addition would build on the approximately 30,000 modern air-jet loom machines already operating in the city. The expansion is expected to generate fresh employment while boosting overall production capacity. Sanghavi expressed confidence that Surat would have the largest number of operational air-jet machines anywhere in the world within the next five years.

'With government incentives and modern infrastructure, the textile industry will scale new heights in the global market,' he said.

Government Support and Policy Incentives

Sanghavi highlighted that Gujarat had disbursed ₹8,000 crore to traders under the state's Textile Policy in a single year — a figure that underscores the scale of state backing for the sector. He also pointed to improvements in administrative efficiency under the MSME framework, noting that the number of files cleared per day had risen from around 170 to 397. The government is also making arrangements to directly transfer incentives into the bank accounts of 500 traders every day in the near future, he added.

Infrastructure: PM MITRA Park in the Pipeline

On infrastructure, Sanghavi said the proposed PM MITRA Park is currently in the tendering stage and is expected to anchor what he described as the 'largest textile ecosystem' in South Gujarat. He urged industrialists to expand garment manufacturing with higher value addition, expressing confidence that Surat and the wider South Gujarat region could emerge as India's largest garment manufacturing hub.

Focus on Sustainability and Global Competitiveness

Sanghavi urged textile manufacturers to focus on sustainable, high-quality, value-added products to remain competitive internationally. He noted that Surat's textile entrepreneurs had 'consistently been among the first to adopt new technologies, helping the city retain its prominence in the sector.' The Deputy Chief Minister also acknowledged the contribution of workers and entrepreneurs from across the country who had settled in Surat, crediting them with playing an important role in the city's economic growth.

What the Sammelan Was About

The Weavers' Paramarsh Sammelan was organised to promote sustainable growth and modernisation of Surat's textile industry, encourage wider adoption of air-jet weaving technology, and increase value addition in textile manufacturing. This comes amid a broader national push to position Indian textile clusters as competitive alternatives to Chinese manufacturing in global supply chains.

With the PM MITRA Park tendering underway and direct-benefit transfers being scaled up, the next twelve months will be a key test of whether Surat can convert policy momentum into verifiable industrial output.