The Ministry of Textiles has recently taken decisive steps to improve innovation and sustainability in the technical textiles sector by approving several startup initiatives. Rachna Shah, Secretary of the Ministry, highlighted these efforts during the 7th meeting of the Empowered Programme Committee (EPC) of the National Technical Textiles Mission (NTTM).
Under the umbrella of NTTM’s Grant for Research and Entrepreneurship across Aspiring Innovators in Technical Textiles (GREAT), young innovators, scientists, technologists, and startup ventures are being encouraged to transform their concepts into commercially viable technologies. This initiative aims to foster self-reliance in India's technical textiles sector by supporting functional prototypes and the commercialization of innovative technologies.
The EPC, in its latest session, approved 7 startup proposals under the GREAT scheme, with each startup eligible for funding support of up to INR 50 lakhs from the Government of India. This brings the total number of approved startup proposals under NTTM to 8, focusing on critical areas such as sustainability, composites, high-performance textiles, meditech, and smart textiles.
Among the approved startups are ventures pioneering Braided Composites for military applications, Radmone Integrated IFF Antenna, Surgical Stimulation models using composite materials for medical training, and Nano-fibre infused textiles for energy generation and sensing. These innovations are poised to significantly advance technology-oriented manufacturing in India.
In a complementary effort to enhance academic infrastructure, the EPC sanctioned approximately INR 6.4 crores to IIT Guwahati. This grant, awarded under NTTM’s General Guidelines for Enabling Academic Institutes in Technical Textiles, will support the introduction of new courses and the upgrade of laboratory facilities within the Civil Engineering Department.
By improving its capabilities in technical textiles, particularly in geotextiles, IIT Guwahati aims to better cater to the unique geographical and environmental challenges of the Northeastern region. The institute is poised to play a pivotal role in regional development by offering technical consultancy and necessary support.
