A high-level committee headed by the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary will decide on the fate of 13 defunct cooperative spinning mills.
The committee will decide whether these 13 mills can be rejuvenated or shut down and the assets transferred or sold to other Departments, announced the Minister for Handlooms and Textiles, Dr S. Sundararaj.
According to the policy note tabled in the Assembly today, there are 18 cooperative spinning mills with a spindle capacity of over 4.70 lakh. They produce hank yarn to supply to the handloom weavers cooperative societies.
Now there are five cooperative spinning mills with a total capacity of 97,280 spindles that produce yarn for supply to the weavers who manufacture sarees, ‘dhoties' and school uniforms that are supplied free under Government programmes.
The South India Textile Research Association has formulated a proposal to modernise the five spinning mills at a cost Rs 104.41 crore. The plan will be implemented with financial assistance from the National Cooperative Development Corporation, the note said.
The Minister announced that the Government has decided to modernise and reopen the cooperative spinning mill at Ramanathapuram at a cost of Rs 5.75 crore.
The Tamil Nadu Cooperative Textile Processing Mills at Erode will be modernised and expanded at a cost Rs 5.82 crore. The production capacity will be expanded to process 70,000 metres of cloth a day from 50,000 metres.
The unit was shut down in February 2011 for not meeting effluent treatment standards of the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board. The State Government ordered that the penalty of Rs 1.11 crore be remitted and the mill reopened in June 2011.