First Meeting of Textile Development Council and Kasturi Cotton Launch

First Meeting of Textile Development Council and Kasturi Cotton Launch

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Key takeaways

  • The Ministry of Textiles held the first meeting of the Development Council for Textile Industry (DCTI) in New Delhi to boost global competitiveness.
  • The DCTI created 5 dedicated working groups to improve production, research, exports, raw material supply, and sustainable investments.
  • India expanded the Kasturi Cotton Bharat initiative, managed jointly by the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) and TEXPROCIL.
  • All Kasturi branded cotton must be 100% Indian origin and certified by NABL-accredited laboratories for strict quality standards.

Why in News

  • The Ministry of Textiles hosted the first meeting of the Development Council for Textile Industry (DCTI) in New Delhi to strengthen the sector.
  • At the same time, the government expanded the Kasturi Cotton Bharat initiative to make Indian textiles globally competitive, sustainable, and easily traceable.

Development Council for Textile Industry

  • The DCTI is a top advisory body set up by the Ministry of Textiles that brings together leaders from government, colleges, and private industry.
  • The council created five dedicated working groups to focus on Production and Productivity, Research & Development (R&D), Export & Market Access, Raw Material Availability, and Investment, Skilling, and Sustainability.
  • The council follows the Farm to Fibre, Fibre to Factory, Factory to Fashion, and Fashion to Foreign vision to fix supply chain delays at every step.

Kasturi Cotton Bharat Initiative

  • India launched Kasturi Cotton Bharat as its national premium cotton brand to compete directly with global brands like SUPIMA from the USA and Giza from Egypt.
  • The Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) and the Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL) manage this project together using a self-regulation model.
  • Every cotton bale must pass quality checks in NABL-accredited laboratories for length, strength, cleanliness, moisture, and color before getting certified.
  • Cotton that fails to meet these exact quality standards cannot use the Kasturi brand label.
  • The Kasturi label strictly guarantees Indian origin, which means imported cotton cannot receive this brand name.