Kitex Garments announces Rs.1,000 crore investment in Telangana

K.T. Rama Rao (right), Telangana Industries Minister, with the Kitex team in Hyderabad on July 9.

Will Kerala’s loss be Telangana’s gain? Kitex Garments Ltd, the largest employer in the private sector in Kerala whose chairman and managing director Sabu M. Jacob has been in the news alleging harassment by the Kerala government, announced on July 9 that it was investing Rs.1,000 crore in Kakatiya Textiles Mega Park (KTMP) at Warangal, Telangana.

K.T. Rama Rao, Telangana’s Minister for Industry and Commerce, Information Technology, Electronics and Communications,posted on Twitter: “Delighted to announce the entry of KITEX group, world’s 2nd largest manufacturer of kids apparel into Telangana with an initial investment of ₹1,000 Crores. They’ve chosen KMTP, Warangal for their factories. My gratitude to Mr. Sabu M. Jacob, MD of KITEX group on a quick decision.”

A statement from Sabu Jacob’s office said: “In principle, the Kitex Group has agreed upon a Phase 1 investment of Rs.1,000 crores within a span of two years in the textile industry for the project ‘Textile Apparel’ in the Kakatiya Textiles Mega Park in Warangal. This investment will generate employment of 4,000 jobs in the State of Telangana.” Officials from the Telangana Industries and Commerce Department told Frontline that Sabu Jacob has also assured the State of more investments in the future.

The decision by Kitex Garments Ltd to invest in Telangana comes in the wake of Sabu Jacob saying that his company was looking to shift its proposed Rs.3,500 crore project from Kerala to other States, including Telangana. Reports indicate that nine States, including Karnataka and Telangana, are looking to woo Kitex Garments to their backyards.

The Telangana government certainly seems to have stolen a march on the competition. The K. Chandrasekhar Rao government on July 9 sent out a plane load of officials from the Telangana Industries and Commerce Department to Kochi to meet Kitex Garments’ top honchos, including Sabu Jacob. They were brought back to Hyderabad in the same plane for a meeting with Minister Rama Rao. According to Telangana government officials, the six-member delegation from Kitex Garments held a marathon three-hour meeting with Rama Rao and a team of officials from the Industries and Commerce Department led by Principal Secretary Jayesh Ranjan.

Officials disclosed that Rama Rao explained to the delegation the availability of quality power, the fact that cotton was extensively cultivated in the State and the investor-friendly policies of the State, especially the Telangana State Industrial Project Approval and Self-Certification System (TS-iPASS) Act, 2014, which is basically a single-window approval system. Rama Rao also informed the delegation that their company would be granted mega project status under TS-iPASS and, accordingly, tailor-made incentives would be made available.

After the meeting, the delegation from Kitex Garments was flown in a helicopter to the Kakatiya Textiles Mega Park at Warangal for a spot inspection. Accompanying the delegation was E.V. Narasimha Reddy, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TSIIC).