<span style="color: #222222;">Union Minister Suresh Prabhu has underlined the Centre's commitment to the leather industry and cited the 2,600 crore rupees package approved for the sector earlier. Speaking at an event organised by the Council for Leather Exports (CLE) in Chennai, the Commerce and Industry Minister also assured state governments of help in setting up new leather clusters or providing additional facilities. He said, the Centre is willing to sanction a new mega leather cluster in Tamil Nadu and the matter has already been taken up with the state government. Apart from this, the centre is also ready to provide additional facilities, he added.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Referring to the 2,600 crore rupees package approved for the sector which was aimed at generating employment in leather and footwear sectors, the Minister termed it as a transparent package and wanted the industry to make the most of it. He said the leather and footwear sectors have the potential to generate 3.24 lakh new jobs in three years.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">He said assurances have been given to Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal to help boost the sector in these states. Any government wants to do this, Centre will be very happy to support, he added.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">The minister said while the Centre has already sanctioned five common effluent treatment plants, nine are awaiting approval.</span><br />''  <br />