Textile industry suffers Rs 4,000 crore loss in Maharashtra in one month due to ongoing West Asia crisis: MLA

The textile industry in India has suffered massive losses because of the West Asia crisis with Maharashtra accounting for a whopping Rs 4,000 crore in one month.

"Due to West Asia conflict, the exports of India's textile products have come to a standstill. At the same time, rising prices of raw materials like cotton and yarn have forced the industry to shut operations for three days a week” said Samajwadi Party MLA Rais Shaikh, who is a two-time MLA from Bhiwandi East in the Then district.

"Due to the Gulf conflict, both the raw material supply chain and export channels have been severely disrupted, forcing units to halt production for two days a week," he said.

He demanded that the State government provide a special financial relief package for the textile sector.

Shaikh urged Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Textile Minister Sanjay Savkare, Shaikh said that a survey by the State Textile Corporation revealed that the industry suffered losses of around Rs 4,000 crore in just one month - March 2026. "Maharashtra has about 9,48,000 power looms and 4,000 handlooms, accounting for 39 per cent of the country's total power looms. If the government fails to support the sector, there could be a reverse migration of workers similar to what was seen during the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said.

The textile industry is the second largest employer after agriculture with key textile hubs in the state including Bhiwandi (Thane), Malegaon (Nashik), and Ichalkaranji (Kolhapur).

"Due to the Gulf conflict, both the raw material supply chain and export channels have been severely disrupted, forcing units to halt production for two days a week," he said.

Stating that the industry is already struggling with high electricity costs, the legislator said that with exports stalled, the financially strained sector faces the risk of collapse, which could result in massive job losses among skilled and unskilled workers