The Association has requested for dormitory-style hostels for unmarried workers and affordable housing for families.
| Photo Credit:
The Tiruppur Exporters Association (TEA) has urged the Tamil Nadu government to make affordable housing and dormitory-style hostels for migrant workers a key component of the proposed Tamil Nadu Industrial Policy 2026. Adequate accommodation is essential to attract and retain workers as the knitwear hub prepares for a fresh phase of export-led expansion, the industry has said.The demand was raised in a meeting of TEA officials at Textiles Sector Roundtable organised by Guidance Tamil Nadu in Chennai on Friday as part of the government’s consultations with industry stakeholders for framing the new industrial policy.The Association has requested for dormitory-style hostels for unmarried workers and affordable housing for families. It also requested that the Women’s Hostel at Neruperichal be reallocated to the association to help meet the accommodation needs of workers employed in Tiruppur’s garment industry.Given that MSMEs dominate the sector, the industry has therefore proposed that the State government establish worker accommodation parks in four industrial zones across Tiruppur, each with the capacity to house 25,000 workers, taking the first-phase capacity to one lakh workers. The infrastructure could be under a public-private partnership model, they add.Besides housing, the association sought capital subsidy for technology upgradation and automation, establishment of a Technical Textiles and Centre of Excellence for Activewear in Tiruppur, enhancement of solar capacity limits, and green subsidies to improve the global competitiveness of exporters.India’s Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with 38 countries are expected to significantly boost apparel exports, creating an additional two to three lakh jobs in the Tiruppur cluster over the coming years, says TEA.“The industry is facing a 20 per cent shortage of workers. To attract and retain workers, providing housing is critical,” TEA General Secretary N Thirukkumaran told businessline.Published on July 26, 2026
