The United States’ new 12.5% “forced-labour” tariff under Section 301 applies evenly across competing nations like Vietnam and Bangladesh, introducing massive compliance costs expected to shave 8–10% off the operating margins of Indian textile and readymade garment (RMG) exporters. Currently, only 25–30% of Indian apparel export consignments carry formal fiber-traceability certifications, and price-sensitive US retailers are refusing to absorb these auditing expenses. While India is self-sufficient in raw cotton, its synthetic and blended apparel relies on China for 12–15% of specialized yarns, performance fabrics, and trims. Consequently, Indian manufacturers are rapidly looking into blockchain-based tracking, DNA tagging, and isotopic testing to verify that these inputs contain zero links to restricted global zones.