Surat textile units have been urged to file mandatory returns on the Textile Statistical Returns System (TSRS), with Textile Commissioner Vrunda Desai warning that non-compliance could attract penalties. The digital reporting system has registered 7,166 units since its launch on August 22 and is intended to create a more comprehensive database of the textile industry.
Desai made the appeal during her visit to Surat on Friday, when Union Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh was also in the city. She said the unique identification number generated through the TSRS portal would help textile units access benefits under various government schemes.
The system covers 11 textile segments and allows industry participants to register under the category relevant to their operations. Returns can be filed through the online portal or a mobile application. Annual Statistical Returns and Monthly Statistical Returns are currently mandatory for entities with a Goods and Services Tax Identification Number, or GSTIN.
The requirement is expected to expand in a second phase to units that do not have a GSTIN. In a subsequent phase, GST and TSRS records will be mapped so that relevant details can be retrieved from GST records, according to the information shared by the textile commissioner.
Desai said accurate and timely data would be important for future planning and emphasised that the reporting formats had been developed after consultation with industry stakeholders. The system, she said, incorporated suggestions received from textile businesses before being made mandatory.
The reporting push comes as the government seeks to strengthen Gujarat’s textile value chain, which includes fibre, yarn, processing and garmenting. Desai said sustained technology upgradation had helped the state remain competitive and that the benefits of new capital expenditure should extend across the entire chain rather than remain concentrated in individual segments.
Gujarat accounts for around 40% of the uptake under the Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme, Desai said. She added that every rupee disbursed as subsidy had attracted Rs 19 in industry investment. The scheme has supported cumulative investments of around Rs 53,000 crore in the textile sector, according to her remarks.
The wider industrial infrastructure push also includes the proposed PM MITRA Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel Park, which has an investment outlay of Rs 1,000 crore. The park was described as a key initiative for supporting the next phase of growth in the textile sector.
For Surat’s textile businesses, the immediate requirement is registration and regular filing on the TSRS platform. The next stages will involve bringing non-GSTIN units into the system and linking the database with GST records, while penalties may apply to units that do not comply with the mandatory return requirements.
