Aizawl/Agartala, May 21 - An experts panel of the union ministry of textiles has called for a separate policy for promotion and development of textiles and garment manufacturing for the entire northeastern region, officials said Monday.

The fourth meeting of the Expert Consultative Committee (ECC) of the Indian Jute Industries Research Association (IJIRA), under the ministry of textiles, held in Aizawl last week resolved that on the basis of such separate policy, a detailed project report (DPR) needed to be prepared for funding by the central government.

'To exploit vast resources of the northeastern region, a separate policy is urgently needed to promote textiles and garment manufacturing in the industry-starved region,' a Mizoram industry department official said.

He said: 'As part of the ground work to make the special strategy for promotion and development of textiles and garment manufacturing in the region, the first ECC meeting was held at Aizawl, and the next meeting would be held in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.'

Senior officials of northeastern states, the chairman of the Powerloom Development and Export Promotion Council, the director of IJIRA, senior executives of the Central Silk Board, the North Eastern Development Finance Corporation, and entrepreneurs attended the meeting chaired by Zothankuma, director of Mizoram industries department.

Meanwhile, Tripura Industries and Commerce Minister Jitendra Chowdhury has said northeastern India's first textile park will be set up in the state.

Chowdhury told IANS that the proposed textile park in Tripura is part of the 21 new textile parks to be set up across the country under the Integrated Textile Parks (SITP) scheme. These parks would be set up over a period of three years on a public-private-partnership basis.

'A special purpose vehicle (SPV) would be formed to execute the project. The SPV would channelise funds and supervise other aspects of the ambitious project,' he said.