Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said on Saturday that with the right infrastructure and dignity for every hand in the textile value chain, India has the potential to lead the global textile market once again.

The Congress leader said India’s textile legacy is unmatched, but the majority of cotton seeds and technology here depends on foreign companies and the country’s farmers and workers in the industry remain underpaid. Gandhi also visited a local store selling cotton fabrics to understand the value chain.

“India’s textile legacy is unmatched —every 100 km, a new art form and a new story. But today, the majority of our cotton seeds and farming technology depend on foreign companies, our farmers remain underpaid, and our supply chains are deeply fragmented,” he said in a post on X. Gandhi said he recently met with the family that runs HP Singh fabrics in Delhi to understand the supply chain that takes a simple cotton bud and weaves it into beautiful fabrics.

“It is their strong belief that India —which is about 10X behind China in textile exports — can once again become a global textile hub if the government supports the right measures. Such as, investing in indigenous cotton, building integrated textile zones, and establishing India-led global certification systems,” Rahul Gandhi noted.

“With the right infrastructure and dignity for every hand in the value chain, India will capture the textile market once again,” Rahul said. He also attached to his post a six-minute video of his visit to the store and his conversation with the owners. From Andhra Pradesh’s Kalamkari and Ikkat to Gujarat’s Ajrak, Rajasthan’s Bagru, Bengal’s Jamdani and the once world-renowned Indian chintz — every 100 km in India reveal a new textile tradition, a new art form and a new story.

“Today, the majority of India’s cotton is genetically-modified BT cotton — controlled by foreign corporations like Monsanto. Our indigenous varieties are disappearing, our water usage is unsustainable, and our farmers remain underpaid. Despite being one of the largest cotton producers, India lags nearly 10 times behind China in textile exports,” he noted. Gandhi said the Singh family emphasised that India can reclaim its position as a global textile powerhouse, but only if the country invests in indigenous cotton, builds integrated textile zones and creates India-led global certification systems.

“Unlike countries like China and Bangladesh that thrive on vertical integration, India’s supply chains remain scattered and inefficient, driving up costs and pushing out the very farmers and weavers who built this industry,” he said.