MoT, UNEP and CCI join hands to mainstream sustainability across textile value chain

New Delhi, October 18, 2022: The Ministry of Textiles (MoT) recently celebrated the World Textile Day by signing an agreement with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) with a vision to mainstream sustainability and circularity in the textile sector.

The agreement was signed in a national level consultation conducted with the idea of discussing and moving forward with the agenda of mainstreaming sustainability initiatives across the textile value chain. Digital interventions and potential strategies to better sustainability and circularity were also discussed at the meeting.

Representatives from all the parties attended the consultation and signed a co-operation agreement on designing a campaign on ‘Mainstreaming sustainability and circularity in Textile sector’.

Prajakta Verma, Joint Secretary of the MoT was quoted saying in the event that “we need critically evaluated approaches in a world which is driven by the 2030 Sustainability and the Climate agenda. She said that the conference is setup in the context to devise a multi-stakeholder approach which is a key to driving the future of the sector.

On the occasion, Upendra Singh, secretary, Ministry of Textiles said, “Though the textile parks are equipped with CETP facilities, the textile industry is still facing problems in effluent management due to the unavailability of data on waste generations from the processing clusters.”

Although the textile sector is the second largest employment-generating sector in India, addressing the health hazards of the workers in the industry and producing 100% sustainable textile, making the factories safer, eliminating the environment pollution created due to textile sector operations and low-cost technological intervention in the sector are a few areas that still need greater focus and action.      

Meanwhile, a few projects and the likes of the Sustainable Textiles for Sustainable Development (SusTex) project are already underway wherein the focus is on sustainable production and consumption of eco-friendly textiles with improving employment and working conditions of textile artisans.

The SusTex achieves its goals via research, training, dissemination activities, advocacy and outreach. Even a model eco-friendly textile park has been set up under the programme that acts as an example for other approved textile parks in India.

In another move recently, the Ministry of Textiles and Deutsche Gesellschaft fur InternationaleZusammenarbeit (GIZ) have signed an agreement to implement a project on sustainability and value addition in the cotton economy in India.