The Bangladesh Textile Mills Corporation (BTMC; ) is a state-owned corporation under the Ministry of Textiles and Jute responsible for government-owned textile mills and related industrial assets in Bangladesh. It was established under the Bangladesh Industrial Enterprises (Nationalisation) Order, 1972 following the nationalisation of textile mills after the Bangladesh Liberation War.
As of 2026, government and parliamentary sources described 25 state-owned textile mills as remaining under BTMC. The government has been attempting to bring a number of closed mills back into operation through public–private partnerships, leasing and redevelopment of mill sites.
History
BTMC was established on 26 March 1972 under President's Order No. 27 of 1972. The order created a state corporation for textile enterprises nationalised after independence. According to the Ministry of Textiles and Jute, 74 textile mills were initially brought under the corporation, and BTMC formally began operations on 1 July 1972.
Between 1978 and 1984, BTMC established another 12 mills, bringing the total number of mills in its portfolio to 86. From the late 1970s onward, successive governments reduced the public-sector textile portfolio through transfers to former owners, sales, employee ownership, liquidation and other forms of divestment. BTMC states that 58 mills were sold, transferred or liquidated between 1977 and 2010.
Privatisation did not always result in the reopening of transferred mills. In 2020, New Age reported that mills transferred or sold to private owners had frequently remained closed and that several units had been taken back by the government after purchasers failed to comply with transfer conditions.
The statutory framework governing BTMC changed in 2018. The Bangladesh Industrial Enterprises Nationalisation Act, 2018 repealed the 1972 Nationalisation Order but expressly continued BTMC and the other corporations established under the earlier order as corporations under the new Act. Under the Act, BTMC may control and supervise textile enterprises placed under it and may hold shares or other interests in industrial enterprises.
Mills and restructuring
BTMC's portfolio has declined substantially from its peak of 86 mills. The Ministry of Textiles and Jute reported in 2026 that 25 mills remained under the corporation's control.
The government has increasingly sought to operate these assets through private-sector participation rather than direct state production. In June 2026, Textiles and Jute Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir told Parliament that 15 of BTMC's 25 textile mills had been selected for operation under a public–private partnership model. Agreements had been signed with private partners for four mills and their handover completed. Production had resumed at two of the four, while work was continuing to bring the others into operation.
The minister separately reported that two textile mills had been handed over to private operators under leasing arrangements.
BTMC and the Public Private Partnership Authority have continued tendering other mill sites. PPP tenders issued during 2025 and 2026 included projects for Tangail Cotton Mills, Magura Textile Mills, Dinajpur Textile Mills and Darwani Textile Mills. BTMC was still issuing and revising tenders for the Dinajpur and Darwani sites in 2026.
Textile Village project
Part of BTMC's restructuring strategy has involved using former mill land for new industrial development. At the site of Chittaranjan Cotton Mills in Narayanganj, BTMC developed a project known as the Textile Village.
In June 2026, the government told Parliament that 22 industrial plots had been planned at the site and 10 had been allocated. A modern knitting and garment factory had begun production on one of the allocated plots. BTMC described the project as part of an effort to make use of underutilised state-owned textile property and accommodate smaller industrial investors.
Functions and legal framework
Under the Bangladesh Industrial Enterprises Nationalisation Act, 2018, BTMC is authorised to control, supervise and coordinate industrial enterprises placed under it and to establish or develop enterprises within its field. The law also permits the government to transfer scheduled industrial enterprises or ownership interests and allows corporations such as BTMC to retain shares or other rights in industrial enterprises.
BTMC's contemporary activities therefore include management of remaining state textile assets, leasing and PPP arrangements, redevelopment of mill land, tendering of industrial sites and oversight of enterprises or assets retained by the corporation.
The corporation's head office is located at BTMC Bhaban, 7–9 Kawran Bazar in Dhaka.
See also Textile industry in Bangladesh Bangladesh Handloom Board Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation Bangladesh Sericulture Development Board Ministry of Textiles and Jute
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