Sustainability in India’s Textiles Sector is the Need of the Hour
July 10, 2022 Economic and material sustainability is the way forward for India’s textile industry.
Inflationary and raw material price pressures are forcing the textile sector to investigate the use of recycled fibers, cotton blends, and cost cutting measures. That was the focus of a recent two-day hybrid international conference on “Sustainable Materials, Management, and Innovative Technologies,” organized by Kumaraguru College of Technology in Coimbatore, India.
The Paris Accord on climate change made a recommendation to limit global warming to 1.5 degree C, which necessitates textiles and manufacturing sectors to contribute to reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
In his inaugural address, Professor Seeram Ramakrishna of the National University of Singapore highlighted the social cost associated with excessive material usage, pollution effects, and finite nature of materials. These are key drivers for green economy and manufacturing. He said the Paris Accord’s global warming target can be achieved only by exploring circularity approaches.
Professor Govindan Ramakrishnan of Kumaraguru College of Technology noted that academia should focus on research on various aspects of sustainability. Interesting projects can develop advanced textiles using blends of cotton, bamboo, banana fibers, and other materials.
“Today’s students are going to be future leaders, policy makers, researchers, and scientists who need to be environmentally literate in addition to having domain expertise, said Professor D. Saravanan, Principal of Kumaraguru College of Technology. “This calls for a holistic multidisciplinary approach in higher education for better engagement of students with societal needs.”
The next phase for the textile industry is to exploit sustainable fibers, green manufacturing technologies, curbing pollution, and adopting to cost effecting manufacturing processes. In my opinion, sustainability is built on 3Es: economic sustainability, energy sustainability, and environmental sustainability.
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