The grand event of ‘Arunachal Fashion Week – The Artisans Movement’, presented by Yana In Style, was held at Waii International Hotel in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh, on April 22. The event was organized to promote and preserve the traditional handicrafts and textiles of Arunachal Pradesh. The charitable event provided a platform for artisans and weavers from remote areas of Arunachal Pradesh to exhibit and showcase their creations and products. The event aimed to revive the rich textiles and promote the products of local designers and artisans by providing networking alliances with partners and markets within the country. The Arunachal Fashion Week – The Artisans Movement by Yana In Style (You Are Not Along In Style) was inaugurated by the special guest of the evening, Talo Potom, deputy commissioner of Itanagar Capital Complex, Arunachal Pradesh. The evening was filled with glamour and glitz as designers and weavers showcased their creations in a ramp walk/fashion show. The event also included cultural and awards programmes, clothing and handicrafts exhibition stalls, and an after-party. The fashion week showcased the social and cultural aspects of different tribes of Arunachal Pradesh. The designers and weavers were determined to succeed in their mission to promote and preserve loom heritage as well as the vast variety of textiles, indigenous to Arunachal Pradesh. The event also included the Spring/Summer Fashion Queen and King Award and the Buyer of the Year award. The total footfall for the event was approximately around 350. The designers who participated at the Arunachal Fashion Week were Rupa Rebe, Risha Tok, Angie Chakpu Namchoom, Juno Pinggam, Mikbi Riba, Jibom roley, Yachi Natung taniang, and Yana Ngoba Chakpu, who was also the organizer of the event. Hiphop artist and music composer, along the chain of rap culture from Itanagar, Karik Yomcha aka Meverick aka karick_y performed at the event. The event was a huge success, with visitors appreciating the traditional handicrafts and textiles of Arunachal Pradesh. The Arunachal Fashion Week – The Artisans Movement by Yana In Style is an excellent initiative to promote and preserve the local artisans and weavers of Arunachal Pradesh. The event has helped to create a bridge between local artisans and designers with buyers and markets both locally and nationally. Apart from promoting the traditional handicrafts and textiles of Arunachal Pradesh, the event also worked towards providing a livelihood to many artisans and weavers.

Going big on the textile industry, and under the 'Make in India' effort, the government has planned to set up seven mega textile parks under PM Mega Integrated Textile Regions and Apparel (PM MITRA) scheme. These parks will be set up in seven states namely; Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a tweet, "The parks would provide state-of-the-art infrastructure for the textiles sector, attract investment of crores and create lakhs of jobs". The scheme was announced in October 2021, and the parks will be set up by 2026-27. The total outlay for the project is Rs 4,445 crore, though the initial allocation in the 2023-24 Budget is only Rs 200 crore. "PM MITRA mega textile parks will boost the textiles sector in line with 5F (Farm to Fibre to Factory to Fashion to Foreign) vision," PM Modi tweeted. The Centre envisages an investment of nearly Rs 70,000 crore into these parks, with employment generation for about 20 lakh people, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said. Goyal said, "The textile industry has been unorganised in the country. This increased wastage and logistical costs impacted the competitiveness of the country's textile sector. This cluster-based approach, a vision of the Prime Minister, will solve several problems of the sector". The BJP leader also said that environmental clearances would also be eased under the scheme. Textiles Secretary Rachna Shah said that the Ministry had selected the locations for the parks in a transparent manner, having considered 18 proposals from 13 states. The eligibility of the states and sites was evaluated using a transparent challenge. It was based on objective criteria, taking into account a variety of factors such as connectivity, the existing ecosystem, textiles, industry policy, infrastructure, utility services, etc. PM Gati Shakti- National Master Plan for Multi-modal Connectivity--was also used for validation. PM MITRA Parks represents a distinctive model in which the Central and State Governments will collaborate to boost investment, foster innovation, create job opportunities, and eventually turn India into a major hub for textile production and exports. Through these parks, an expenditure of almost 70,000 crores of rupees and the creation of 20 lakh jobs are anticipated. "An SPV [Special Purpose Vehicle] owned by the Centre and State Government will be set up for each park which will oversee the implementation of the project. The Ministry of Textiles will provide financial support in the form of Development Capital Support upto Rs 500 crores per park to the Park SPV," the Ministry said. The Ministry added in the statement, "A Competitive Incentive Support (CIS) upto Rs 300 crores per park to the units in PM MITRA Park shall also be provided to incentivise speedy implementation. Convergence with other Government of India schemes shall also be facilitated in order to ensure additional incentives to the Master Developer and investor units". 

A terrible fire occurred at a textile mill in Shyampur in the capital is now is under control. On Tuesday, February 7 at around 11 in the morning the terrible fire broke out. The incident confirmed by the duty officer Khaleda Yasmin. Initially, Khaleda Yasmin could not give any information about the cause of the fire and the casualties.

A fire broke out in a textile mill in Shyampur in the capital. Five fire service units are working to extinguish the fire. The fire incident took place on Tuesday, February 7 in the morning.

Varanasi, (Uttar Pradesh) [India], December 15 (ANI): The textile industry is committed to achieving the $100 billion export target by 2030. Kashi and Tamil Nadu will play a major role in this, said Union Commerce and Textiles minister Piyush Goyal after his meeting with textile industry leaders in Varanasi. "The textile industry is full of confidence. They are going to achieve the USD 100 bn targets and they are going to become the largest creator of jobs and employment and work opportunities in this country after agriculture," said Piyush Goyal. Union Commerce and Textiles minister Piyush Goyal said that Union Education and Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has steered this wonderful one-month program through which we are bringing Tamil Nadu and Kashi culture closer together. "My colleague Union Education and Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has steered this wonderful one-month program through which we are bringing Tamil Nadu and Kashi culture closer together. Examples of our tradition, rich culture, history and old tie between Kashi and Tamil Nadu will open up new opportunities and new possibilities," said Goyal. Piyush Goyal said that textile is a sector where margins of 5 per cent are very important to become competitive, adding, "With the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with countries we are insisting that we get duty-free access for Indian textiles. Both in UAE and Australia textile sector assures me that the possibilities for growth are huge. We are working on FTAs which will all give a boost to the textile sector." Citing an example of the United Kingdom Goyal said that the UK has a 12 per cent import duty and a 9 per cent import duty on different items. "If that goal tells you better but textile is a sector is are very important to become competitive. With Richard's agreement, we are insisting that we get duty-free access to Indian textiles both in UAE and Australia. The textile sector assures me that the possibilities of growth we are working on should all give a boost to the textile sector. The textile sector has a 9 to 12 per cent import duty on different items. If that goes away, suddenly we get a big boost for our textile industry," said Goyal. He said that PM Mitra park is at an advanced stage of evaluating the 18 proposals received it will hopefully be able to finalise them in the near future. "The MITRA park seeks to integrate the textile value chain from spinning, weaving, processing, dyeing, and printing to garment manufacturing," he said. Chairman and Managing Director of Lakshmi Machine Works Sanjay Jayavarthanavelu, said that both Tamil Nadu and Kashi had a very strong textile industry. "India is going to be a very large player in the textile business. Today we are number three number and soon I'm sure we will become number two. Through FTAs I am sure that India will be able to export a lot of great fabric all over the world and I'm sure it's going to flourish in the future," added Sanjay Jayavarthanavelu. "One thing which India lacked was FTAs.and I thank the government for having worked on many FTAs between India and other countries. This gives access to our goods into those countries and concessional duty compared to the other countries as well, this was sure to boost our exports to these companies", he said.  Source: ANI

Maruf Khan is a mechanical Engineer working in Textile industry, more specifically in the field of flat knitting from 2007. Currently he is working as Senior Knitwear Engineer at Stoll Canada in Toronto. Recently he exchanged his experience and views with our Reporter Salim Malik.   Rtv: Why was the evolution of automation of knitting in Bangladesh important for the country? Maruf Khan: Actually, the automation of the knitting industry in Bangladesh was “the demand of time” and definitely the knit industry handled the challenge very well. Automation is very important not only to increase the production capacity of a factory but also it offers full control over the production to shipment, which includes computerized and systematic production cycle, easy reproduction, minimizing wastage percentage, accurate production planning and implementation etc. All these factors are very crucial to gain the confidence of buyers. As a result Bangladesh is now the second largest knitwear manufacturer in the world and still moving forward.   Rtv: How is your experience with modern garments? Maruf Khan: I am a Mechanical Engineer working in the textile industry, more specifically in the field of flat knitting from 2007. I worked in Bangladesh from 2007 to 2016 for STOLL Germany ( STOLL is the leading Computerized flat knitting machine manufacturer brand from Germany). During this time I observed and actively interacted with the complete switchover of Bangladesh flat knit industry to automated production system which resulted in Bangladesh as the 2nd largest knitwear manufacturer right after China. In 2016 I got the opportunity to work in the field of technical textile in USA. 2016-17 I worked for Stoll US in their New York office and in 2018 I was moved to Stoll Canada to work furthermore into Smart textile and till now I am working in Toronto as Senior Textile Engineer. From 2016 I am working mainly in the technical textile / functional textile field which include Smart textile, e-Textile, medical apparel, furniture, automobile etc, which is definitely a huge opportunity for me to explore the future of knitting.   Rtv:  What is smart textile and what is your role in development and production of smart textile? Maruf Khan: Smart textiles can be defined as textiles which have the abilities to sense and react to environmental conditions and external stimuli such as temperature, electrical properties, bio sensing properties etc. A complete smart textile solution consists of different components like textile, electrical elements, mechanical elements, software, hardware etc. However, as a Senior Knitwear Engineer, my main focus is to develop / create computer generated programs for computerized knitting machines to integrate different functional elements / sensors within the knitted fabrics. During the development and production process I also have to review, monitor and report on new product plans and recommend materials based on design objectives, such as strength, weight, heat resistance, electrical conductivity, and cost as well.    Rtv: The fourth industrial revolution is ahead. Is it the biggest challenge of this country? Will 4 million workers lose their jobs? Maruf Khan: Yes, the Fourth Industrial Revolution is ahead (or the early phase has begun already). The advantages of Fourth Industrial Revolution are increased productivity, efficiency and quality in processes, greater safety for work, enhanced decision making with data-based tools, improved competitiveness by developing customized products that satisfy consumers' needs, etc. Considering these advantages, we can clearly say that Fourth Industrial Revolution is not a threat for Bangladesh textile industry but an opportunity to grow. With the growing productivity we can able to capture more share of the global market, which will result in creating more job opportunities for the industry. To support the upcoming situation we only need to prepare ourself by train our current manpower to achieve the required skill set.   Rtv:  What kind of preparation is needed to face the challenge? Maruf Khan: Accordingly to Britannica “The Fourth Industrial Revolution is therefore not a prediction of the future but a call to action,”. And we have to take the initiative now to prepare ourself for the revolution. To do so, we must ensure complete connectivity with Information Technology, very importantly invest more on education and training, increase acceptance of new technology and skill sets etc. Fourth Industrial Revolution will come with more productivity & more automation, at the same time it will come up with more product demand worldwide as well. We have to take the advantages to increase productivity by using technology and have to grab more of global market share by utilizing our skilled manpower.   (Maruf Khan started his textile career in 2007 at Stoll Bangladesh (former Tricotex Knitting Machinery Ltd) and worked till 2016. During this period, he experienced the complete transition of Bangladesh knitting industry from manual to fully computerized knitting. To support this huge industrial transition Maruf Khan was also actively involved in training for knitting programmers, machine technicians and operators as well. He earned a vast knowledge and expertise on high volume production and R&D for fashion garments in Bangladesh. In 2016 Maruf Khan moved to Stoll America Knitting Machinery Inc, located at New York, USA and start exploring the field of Technical textile, which includes automobile, computing textile, medical apparel, bio sensing textile, furniture, compression garments, functional apparels, 3D knitting etc. During this time his main responsibilities was to provide knitting programming support to various clients, work on product development for technical applications, carry out update training programs for clients etc. In 2018 Maruf was transferred to Stoll Canada to provide onsite support to Canada based clients. Maruf Khan earned his Mechanical Engineering degree in 2004. In addition, he also earned EMBA in Operations Management in 2008.)    

A devastating fire has broken out at a cotton godown of Saiham Textile Mill in Madhabpur upazila of Habiganj in the early hours of Monday. Madhabpur Police Station Officer-in-Charge Chandan Kumar Chakraborty told RTV Online that the fire erupted at 1am at the mill owned by district BNP president Syed Md Fayesal. On information, six units of fire service from Habiganj, Madhabpur and Shayestaganj rushed to the spot and were trying to douse the fire. The reasons behind the fire could not be known immediately. MHK