With a US$ 4 billion industry, India stands second in the manufacturing of leather garments and footwear. It has the largest livestock population in the world and produces 1.8 billion sq.ft. of leather annually. Today, the leather industry ranks 8th in the export trade of the country.

The industry covers a vast spectrum of inputs, activities, skills and products i.e. livestock, hides and skins, tanning, leather products and exports.

Livestock
India is the leading livestock holding country in the world. It ranks first in the case of cattle (including buffaloes), second in goats and fourth in the case of sheep.
While buffaloes and goats have recorded annual growth rates of 1.86% and 3.11% respectively, cattle and sheep have recorded a marginal growth rate of 0.52%.

Table: Livestock Population - India and the World (2000)

Species	World(Million)	India(Million)	% Share	Rank
Cattle	1329	211	16	I
Buffaloes	161	96	59	I
Goats	750	144	19	II
Sheep	1050	53	5	IV

*source FIEO

Hides and Skins
About 60% of hides and 90% of the skins are obtained from slaughter. It is well known that in India, cattle and buffaloes are reared for milk and draught, and they end up being slaughtered when they become unproductive. On the other hand, goats and sheep are basically reared for meat.

Table: Availability of Hides and Skins in India (2000)

Category	Net Availability (in million pieces)	Slaughtered(%)	Fallen(%)
Cattle Hides	25	50-60	40-50
Buffalo Hides	21	60-70	30-40
Goat Skins	101	90	10
Sheep Skins	34	90	10

*source FIEO

Recovery of fallen hides in India is confronted with a number of socio-economic issues. This is resulting in significant non-recovery of hides.

Table: Recovery of Hides and Skins in India (2000)

Category	Recovery (million pcs)	Non-Recovery (million pcs)	Total (million pcs)
Cattle Hides	25.0	5.3	30.3
Buffalo Hides	21.1	2.1	23.2
Goat Skins	100.8	5.4	106.2
Sheep Skins	34.3	3.4	37.7

*source FIEO

In other words, they are being wasted due to non-availability of traditional flayers as well as the local practice of burying the dead animals in certain parts of the country. However, in the case of skins, the wastage is confined to lambs/kids due to uneconomical reasons.

Tanning Industry
The tanning industry is concentrated in three states i.e. Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh. There are around 1600 tanneries in India, Tamil Nadu accounts for 52%, West Bengal 23% and U.P. 12%. Other important states having tanneries are Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab.

The Tanning industry in India is well developed. It has the back-up of a strong R&D base, modern technology as well as trained manpower. The unique aspect is that it turns out best possible quality leathers from relatively low quality hides.

Leather Products Industries
The main products made out of leather are footwear, leather garments, leather goods such as hand bags, belts, wallets, gloves, sports goods, harness and saddler, upholstery etc. Of all these items, it is footwear that consumes about 60% of the total leather production. The manufacture and export of leather products is systematically promoted as their value addition is 4 to 5 times that of raw material.

Table: India's Exports of Leather & Leather Products (1996-97 to 2002-03) (Figures in Crores Rs.)

Year	Finished Leather	Leather Footwear	Footwear Components	Leather Goods	Leather Garments	Total
1996-97	1065	1212	833	1123	1545	5778
1997-98	1065	1062	853	1378	1547	5905
1998-99	1132	1238	1040	1973	1573	6956
1999-00	1035	1433	995	1823	1381	6667
2000-01	1658	1706	1091	2236	2156	8847
2001-02	2181	1880	1112	2108	1806	9087
2002-03	2361	1983	830	2206	1269	8649

*source FIEO

The major customers for India's exports are Germany, USA, Italy, UK, Spain, France, Hongkong etc. Around 70% of the global imports of leather products are accounted for by Western Europe and North America. USA is the largest importer of all kinds of leather products, accounting for about 25% of the global trade.