Bata India bats for footwear PLI to boost output, exports

Footwear major Bata India backed the need for a production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme in the footwear sector, saying that such support from the government will strengthen manufacturing wherewithal, increase exports, and position India as a base for global supplies.

- AKSHARA SRIVASTAVA

"We have been engaging with the government on this and are looking forward to a positive announcement. They have also given some initial signs of that in this year's Union Budget announcements. We are trying to make sure that the supply chain base in India is utilised globally as well," Gunjan Shah, managing director and chief executive officer, Bata India, told Business Standard in an exclusive interview.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced a focus product scheme for the footwear sector in her Budget 2025 speech last month. Following the announcement, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said at Invest Karnataka 2025 Global Investors Meet in Bengaluru in mid-February that the government will soon introduce new policies to further promote footwear manufacturing in India, aiming to make the country a global leader in the sector.