For seven years, India has been hoping that its next export revolution will come from the districts. However, its ambition to turn 770 districts into export hubs is still caught between planning and execution. 

Department of Commerce Joint Secretary Amit Kumar said in a statement this month that India’s total exports of goods and services are estimated to have increased to US$ 863.11 billion in 2025-26, against which “a target of US$ 1 trillion in exports has been set through DEH.”

DEH initiative

The DEH initiative was launched in August 2019 with the objective of taking India’s traditional export economy - largely dependent on large industrial clusters, metropolitan cities, and ports - to the district level. It was given an official position in the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) 2023. 

But by March, only 249 districts had been formally adopted by the respective District Export Promotion Committees.

Progress on the ground remains uneven. Declaring a district an Export Hub is easy, but turning its producers, namely small, medium, and small enterprises (MSMEs), into global suppliers is difficult.

India SME Forum Director General Sushma Morthania told The Secretariat, “The plan is good, but comprehensive and strategic mapping of buyers is necessary. Before reaching out to buyers, we first need to do sufficient homework in strengthening the capacity of producers and enabling them to develop competitive products for global markets.”

Real Test Of DEH 

Moving beyond local production, exporter registration, and action plans, the government will have to demonstrate how many districts actually ship goods overseas – not just how many districts are included in the plan.

Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada recently told the Lok Sabha that, “The Districts as Export Hubs initiative has reached a total of 770 districts across 36 States and Union Territories,” after institutional mechanisms in the form of State Export Promotion Committees (SEPCs) and District Export Promotion Committees (DEPCs) were established. 

By March 2026, Draft District Export Action Plans had been prepared for 590 districts, of which 249 had been formally adopted by the respective District Export Promotion Committees.

In other words, Export Blueprints have been prepared for 590 districts, but formal adoption is still incomplete in 341 districts. And this is only the gap in the government process. 

MSMEs, farmers, and small businesses, who are expected to become the key drivers of this export revolution, still face fundamental challenges such as global compliance, certification, finance, logistics, quality standards, packaging, and access to overseas buyers.

ODOP To DEH

The story of Districts as Export Hubs begins with One District One Product (ODOP), which was launched as a state initiative in Uttar Pradesh in 2018 and subsequently implemented across all states. 

The government’s intention was to identify a distinctive product from each district, and then brand and promote it. DEH has expanded this idea into a much larger framework.

The challenge is to build the entire chain — from identifying products at the district level to meeting international quality standards, certification, packaging, logistics, market discovery, and exports. 

This is not a five- or ten-district pilot project. The government is attempting to connect almost the entire district network with the export economy.

Morthania said, “We need to find the right kind of sellers and the right kind of products. Often, we receive very specific export enquiries, but at the district level we do not have any database for them. Our District Industries Centres (DICs) need to be adequately equipped. In such circumstances, finding the right buyer becomes like finding a needle in a haystack.”

Strengthening Productivity

Chandan Chaudhary, Deputy Director, National Productivity Council, told The Secretariat, “This programme is a commendable initiative aimed at showcasing the inherent strength and capabilities of India’s MSMEs to the world. However, transforming potential into globally competitive enterprises requires more than just schemes and infrastructure.” 

“If we want to build a globally competitive manufacturing ecosystem, strengthening productivity and competitiveness at the enterprise level is essential.”

He said export competitiveness begins with the ability of MSMEs to consistently deliver quality products at competitive prices, in the right quantities, and with reliable delivery. 

For this, a district-level productivity improvement programme can be launched, with continuous and structured handholding. Under such a programme, MSMEs can receive practical assistance in areas such as lean practices, process optimisation, digitalisation, skill development, and efficient use of resources. 

Results Matter

Gujarat NGO Federation Chairman Sanjay Pandya told The Secretariat, “The schemes launched by the government to place India’s districts on the global export map have to be taken forward by the states and their district administrations. The real results will come when these plans lead to new exporters, an increase in export value, MSME clusters reaching global markets, greater exports of GI products, removal of logistics bottlenecks and the acquisition of new international buyers.”

According to him, a product from an Indian district alone is not enough to enter international markets. It requires global quality standards, testing, certification, packaging, branding, logistics and market access. 

Large companies generally have systems in place to manage all of this. But for MSMEs in smaller districts, these very factors can become the biggest barriers to starting exports.

Breathing Life Back Into DEH

From June 1 this year, a phased implementation of the initiative has started. It runs through 27 states/union territories and 24 Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Regional Authorities to make the programme more outcome-oriented.

The Commerce Ministry says, “This is a comprehensive approach to viewing districts not merely as units of production, but as the main centres of export planning (Unit of Export Planning).”

Tiruppur, meanwhile, remains a success story.

The Tiruppur Exporters’ Association has now set an ambitious target of ₹1 trillion in exports by 2030. This target is also aligned with India’s national goal of taking textile exports from US$ 38 billion to US$ 100 billion by 2030.

Can the rest of India catch up?