New Delhi, Nov. 8 -- The government is considering amending a 1953 law governing its coir industry, aiming to update rules for a sector that employs more than 750,000 people and exported a record Rs.6,614 crore of products last fiscal year, according to two people aware of the matter.

The Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) ministry wants to broaden the Act's definitions to cover a wider range of products and reduce the delays and paperwork firms face, the people said. Shipments rose 52% to Rs.6,614 crore in FY26 from Rs.4,343 crore in FY25.

"The work on some amendments to the Coir Industry Act has begun. Some discussions have happened on this, and the broad direction for this exercise is to modernise and rationalise," said one ...