Amended TUFS – Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme

Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) is the flagship scheme of the Ministry of Textiles aimed at creating a modern and vibrant textile industry in India. TUFS Scheme was originally introduced in the year 1999 and has evolved over the years as Modified Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (MTUFS), Restructured Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (RTUFS), Revised Restructured Technology Upgradataion Fund Scheme (RRTUFS) and finally now as Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (ATUFS). In this article, we look at the Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (ATUFS), which was approved by the cabinet in December 2015.

Objective of Amended TUFS Scheme

The objective of the newly introduced Amended TUFS Scheme is:

• Employment generation and export by encouraging the apparel and garment industry, which will provide employment to women in particular and increase India’s share in global exports.
• Promotion of Technical Textiles, a sunrise sector, for export and employment.
• Promoting the conversion of existing looms to better technology looms for improvement in quality and productivity.
• Encouraging better quality in the processing industry and checking the need for import of fabrics by the garment sector.

The amended TUFS scheme is expected to give a boost to the “Make in India” scheme and attract investment to the tune of one lakh crore rupees and create over 30 lakh jobs.

Subsidy under Amended TUFS Scheme

Under the Amended TUFS scheme, there will be two broad categories:

1. Apparel, Garment and Technical Textiles, where 15% subsidy would be provided on capital investment, subject to a ceiling of 30 crore rupees for entrepreneurs over a period of five years.
2. Remaining sub-sectors would be eligible for subsidy at a rate of 10%, subject to a ceiling of Rs.20 crore on similar lines.

Availing the Amended TUFS Subsidy

A total of Rs.17822 crores has been approved for the Amended TUFS Scheme, out of which Rs.12671 crores would be used for supporting the liability committed under TUFS Schemes prior to the introduction of ATUFS scheme. For applicants under the ATUFS scheme, a total of Rs.5151 crores has been allocated.

For disbursement of the Amended TUFS subsidy, Office of Textile Commissioner (TXC) is being reorganised and its offices shall be set up in each state. Officers of the TXC would be closely working with the Entrepreneurs for processing of the ATUFS subsidy and verifying the assets created using the subsidy.

Applying for TUFS through iTUFS

Application for Amended TUFS subsidy can be made through the iTUFS online portal – introduced by the Ministry of Textiles.  The new online system aims to bring transparency in the entire subsidy claim process.

To apply for the Amended TUFS subsidy, an application can be submitted through the online iTUFS online portal. Once applied online, the application goes for verification to different stakeholders (Ministry of Textile, Textile Commissioner Office, Bank and others). On receiving the approvals from the various stakeholders, the Ministry of Textiles finally releases the funds. Once, the application process is started, a Unique Identification Number (UID) is provided to the business to track the application online and get regular SMS/Email updates.

The guidelines to Amended TUFS can be accessed below:

To know more about the Amended TUFS Scheme, get in touch with an expert on Nearest.Expert or IndiaFilings