A Chintan Shivir, a brainstorming session on technical textiles, the flagship scheme of the National Technical Textiles Mission, was recently held in the city of Rajkot in Gujarat, India. The session was intended to explore growth opportunities in hometech and clothtech during the Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam. Piyush Goyal, Union minister of commerce and industry, consumer affairs, food, and public distribution and textiles, and Darshana Vikram Jardosh, minister of state for textiles and railways, also attended the event.

The session was jointly organised with the Synthetic and Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC) and Indian Technical Textiles Association (ITTA) encompassing participation of more than 50 major industries in the application areas of home textiles and cloth textiles such as industrial sewing threads, adhesive tapes, labels and batches, furniture and coated fabrics, mosquito nets, fibrefill, filter fabrics, household wipes, stuffed toys, among others, India’s ministry of textiles said in a press release.

The brainstorming session focused on investment and export opportunities and prospects of hometech and clothtech in India and the world, dialogues with leading hometech and clothtech industry magnates, a presentation by the Gujarat state and an interactive Q&A session with the leadership.

Goyal also chaired the second meeting on the textile advisory group on man-made fibres (MMF) with stakeholders of the MMF value chain.

The minister also addressed a session on Sustainability and Circularity in Textiles – Future Roadmap. Sustainability is the focal point in flagship schemes of the ministry like the Amended Technology Upgradation Funds Scheme (ATUFS) and PM MITRA (Pradhan Mantri Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel). Promotion of recycling facilities is being given impetus under ATUFS and PM MITRA parks.

Goyal also visited Somnath and saw the Handicraft and Handloom Expo being organised on the occasion of Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam.

Under the ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ Initiative, the Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam is being conducted in Gujarat from April 17-30, 2023, to celebrate the cultural links between Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. The event is being held in four different places—Somnath, Dwarka, Rajkot, and the Statue of Unity at Kevadia.

At the soft launch of the e-commerce website of India’s ministry of textiles dedicated to handloom and handicrafts in Rajkot, Goyal said that some manufacturers and exporters are ensuring twice the value upon receiving ESG compliance certification. He also talked about the export target of $100 billion for the textile sector by 2030 and overall target of $250 billion by 2030.

Goyal added that an environmental, social, and governance (ESG) Task Force in the textiles sector will be created keeping in mind India's commitment towards sustainability.