The foundation stone for an Apparel and Garment Making Centre at Guwahati was laid by Tarun Gogoi, Chief Minister of Assam and Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Union Minister of State for Textiles on Tuesday. Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Dr. S. K. Panda present at the occasion said that the garment making Centre will provide employment to the youths of Assam. The project will be completed in three months by M/s. NBCC; the total cost involved in the project will be to the tune of Rs. 18 crore which will be fully funded by Government of India.

This project will be helpful in skill upgradation, garment development and marketing. The Secretary further added that a scheme, worth Rs.427 crore, has been sanctioned to promote geotechnical textiles in the North East, which will be helpful in stabilizing roads, addressing the problem of landslides and preserving water bodies.

The Union textile ministry to roll out schemes to the tune of Rs.427 crore to promote geotechnical textiles in the North East India.

The Apparel and Garment Making Centres are being opened in every state in the region, as part of the landmark initiative announced by Modi in Nagaland, on December 1, 2014. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given special attention to the Ministry of Textiles, with special focus on states in the North Eastern Region, said Gangwar.

Work on such a Centre for Nagaland has already begun. The Minister laid the foundation stone for an Apparel and Garment Making Centre in Manipur on March 24, 2015, in Sikkim on March 25, 2015, and in Arunachal Pradesh on April 16, 2015.

Under this scheme each state will have one centre with three units, each having 100 machines. For local entrepreneurs with requisite background, required facilities to start a unit will be provided in 'plug and play' mode. Once such entrepreneurs get established, they can set up their own units, allowing the facility to be provided to new entrepreneurs.

The initiative comes under the North East Region Textile Promotion Scheme (NERTPS) of the Ministry of Textiles. NERTPS is an umbrella scheme for the development of various segments of textiles, i.e. silk, handlooms, handicrafts and apparels & garments. The scheme has a total outlay of Rs. 1038.10 crore in the 12th Five Year Plan.