International Trade Centre (ITC), organised this first-time initiative of bringing an all women delegation to India in partnership with India ITME Society. For the Society, completing its 40th year of service, this activity was a step towards supporting women empowerment by encouraging entrepreneurship in textile sector.

Apart from business, this first-time overseas delegation were also treated to a special heritage walk of GPO organised and initiated by Swati Pandey, postmaster general, government of India.

Among the activities offered to the betterment of the industry and for enhancing the quality of education in textile engineering, a special technical session was organised by India ITME Society. The technical presentation on ‘Digitization and sustainability - Two drivers for the textile industry’ by Dr Ing Yves-Simon Gloy, adjunct professor in Clemson University & RWTH Aachen Institute of Textile Technology, Germany was well received by the academic community, attended by 180+ faculty & students from various institutes like, VJTI, ICT, DKTE, SNDT, NIFT, Kushal Institute, Bangladesh Textile Institute etc.

Dr professor Josphat Igadwa Mwasigi, MOI University, Kenya, alumni of PSG College of Engineering, Coimbatore also made presentation and discussed collaboration with institutes paving way for new partnership in sharing knowledge between India and Kenya. This also shall create avenue for students to explore placement opportunities with multinational companies functioning in Africa, said ITME society in a press release.

India ITME Society is not only about textile and textile engineering, but functions as a culturally conscious organisation promoting all aspect of India as a traditionally rich nation. To showcase rich textile heritage captured in our postal stamps, India ITME Society organised philately exhibition for the invited guests from pan India and across the globe.

Pandey made a scintillating presentation on ‘History of Indian Postal Service’, educating audience about the services rendered by the Indian Postal Department even in the toughest of the tough conditions and how India Post plays a part not only in our heritage but also in our day to day lives even in today’s digital times.

Every invited guest, whether from India or overseas had a takeaway from India ITME Society’s 40th year programme. The various textile and textile engineering associations renewed their collaboration with India ITME Society through MOUs and also shared their experiences, suggestions and way forward to improve trade relations with their respective countries and organisations in a highly interactive Global Connect session in the afternoon session. The panel of speakers consisted of industry leaders from India and across the globe.

The evening celebrations continued into a glittering programme which was attended by dignitaries, diplomatic missions, government officials, industry stalwarts, international & domestic media, presided over by P Sathasivam, former chief justice of India & former governor of Kerala, as the chief guest; Dorothy Tembo, deputy executive director, International Trade Centre, UN, as the guest of honour; and Pandey as special guest.

A Stamp commemorating 4 decades of ‘Spearheading Innovation with Commitment to Quality” was released by Pandey in presence of Sathasivam and Tembo.

India ITME Society extended the mood of celebration for both young and old, across the social and business segments. Certificate of merit and a cash prize of $1500 (₹1 lakh) were awarded to the winners of the contests organised by India ITME Society in various categories.

India ITME Society acknowledged the contributions and expressed gratitude to the stalwarts of the industry who mentored growth of India ITME Society over the last four decades.

The evening brought together people from different walks of life, countries and culture, in knowledge, in business, in comradeship concluding the celebrations with live musical performance ‘Pristine Harmonies’.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (PC)