The government on Wednesday admitted that rupee appreciation against dollar has resulted in a loss of about 20 lakh jobs, besides a decline in exports.

"In certain sectors like textiles, leather, marine products and handicrafts, there is a net decline in exports, which has led to job losses. It was estimated that unless remedial measures are taken, the total job losses could be as high as two million," Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh informed Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.

In another reply, Ramesh said the Special Economic Zones have so far attracted Rs 67,347 crore (Rs 673.47 billion) investment by developers and units and by foreign investors as well.

"Out of the total investment of Rs 67,347 crore made in the newly-notified SEZs by developers and units, foreign investment is of the order of about $ 750 million," Ramesh said.

In a written reply, he said the SEZs notified under the SEZ Act are providing direct employment to 61,015 persons. However, as per studies, indirect employment is estimated to be two or three times of the direct employment, he added.

Out of 439 formal approvals given, 150 are for sector-specific and multi-product SEZs for manufacture of textiles and apparels, leather footwear, automobile component, engineering, gems and jewellery and other labour-intensive sectors.