New Delhi: The Ministry of Textiles today allowed 26 institutes to upgrade their laboratory infrastructure and training of trainers in the application areas of Technical Textiles.
The Ministry said a total value of Rs. 151.02 crores was approved wherein 15 applications valuing INR 105.55 crores are from Public Institutes and 11 applications valuing INR 45.47 crores are from Private Institutes.
Some of the premier institutes to be funded under the scheme include IIT Delhi, NIT Jalandhar, NIT Durgapur, NIT Karnataka, NIFT Mumbai, ICT Mumbai, Anna University, PSG College of Technology, Amity University, among others.
The Ministry approved their applications for the development and introduction of technical textile courses/ papers in the key departments/specialisations as well as introducing a new degree programme in Technical Textiles.
Notably, the majority of the funding to be provided for the upgradation of existing courses include
- Departments related to Textile Technology and Fibre Sciences. They will upgrade courses in all application areas of Technical Textiles including Speciality Fibres;
- Departments related to Design/Civil Engineering. They will upgrade courses in Geo Textiles and Building Textiles;
- Departments related to Fashion Technology/Design. They will upgrade courses in Smart Textiles, Protective Textiles, Sports Textiles, Home Textiles, and Cloth Textiles;
- Departments of Mechanical Engineering. They will upgrade courses in Mobile Textiles, Industrial Textiles; and
- A new Degree Programme in Technical Textiles with a predominant emphasis on all application areas of Technical Textiles.
In addition, the Ministry said it will re-open the Guidelines for Enabling of Academic Institutes in Technical Textiles’ Education in India (Round II) under the National Technical Textiles Mission (NTTM) with relatively eased parameters and wider coverage including a National Board of Accreditation (NBA) score of 750 and above, the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) rating of A+/3.26 or above or top 200 National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) ranked institutes as eligible private institutes under the Education Guidelines 2.0. The guidelines have been in-principally approved and target the inclusion of new courses/papers in the curriculum of the academic year 2025-26.
On the quality and regulation aspect of technical textiles, the Ministry already notified two Quality Control Orders (QCOs) for 31 Technical Textiles products including 19 Geo Textiles and 12 Protective Textiles, which will come into effect from October 7, 2023, onwards. Besides, QCOs for 28 products including 22 Agro Textiles and six Medical Textiles are also in the final stages of issuance and likely to be issued in September 2023.
Furthermore, an additional 28 items are also considered for QCOs including Building Textiles, Industrial Textiles, Ropes & Cordages, among others. To cover the comprehensive impact of the QCOs on the economy, industry and society at large, the Ministry said it is proactively conducting multiple stakeholder consultations with Industries.
The Ministry further approved the Startup Guidelines for Technical Textiles – Grant for Research and Entrepreneurship across Aspiring Innovators in Technical Textiles (GREAT) providing grant-in-aid up to INR 50 Lakhs for up to a period of 18 months, informed Rajeev Saxena, Joint Secretary Textiles during a press conference held here today on the important developments in the National Technical Textiles Mission (NTTM).
With an emphasis on developing the Startup Ecosystem in Technical Textiles, the guidelines focus on supporting individuals and companies to translate prototypes into technologies and products including commercialization. The GREAT Guidelines provide thrust in Technical Textiles’ application areas including Agro-Textiles, Building Textiles, Geo-Textiles, Home Textiles, Medical Textiles, Mobile Textiles, Packaging Textiles, Protective Textiles, Sports Textiles; Development of High-performance fibres and composites; sustainable and recyclable textile materials; smart textiles using artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, 3D/4D printing, and rapid prototyping; and Development of indigenous Machinery/Equipment/Instruments, among others.
To incentivize the incubators, the Ministry will additionally provide 10% of the total grant-in-aid to incubators. To strengthen authenticity and commitment towards the project, a minimum investment of 10% of the funding from the incubatee in two equal instalments is mandated. The Startup Guidelines (GREAT) will provide an impetus for the development of the Technical Textiles startup ecosystem in India, especially in niche sub-segments such as Bio-degradable and Sustainable Textiles, High-performance and Speciality Fibres, and Smart Textiles, among others.
– global bihari bureau
