Industry stakeholders gather in Mumbai to focus on actionable pathways for circular textile and apparel practices

The Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI), in collaboration with SU.RE, held the first ECO-STITCH Sustainability Conclave on April 3, 2026, at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai. Conducted alongside FAB Show 2026, the event brought together industry stakeholders to discuss practical approaches to sustainability. The conclave focused on aligning strategies across the textile and apparel value chain.

The Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI), in partnership with SU.RE, organised the inaugural ECO-STITCH Sustainability Conclave on April 3, 2026, at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai, alongside FAB Show 2026.

The conclave was inaugurated by Smt. Vrunda Desai, Textile Commissioner – Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. Speaking at the inauguration, she expressed, “I am really very happy that we have a day -long conclave, where all industry leaders and stakeholders would be putting in ideas of how to make strides for a more sustainable and ecological environment and how to make India more Atmanirbhar. Internationally – circularity and sustainability are the buzzwords and if we have to make good use of the FTAs and promote our exports, we will have to integrate sustainability as a core business strategy.”

The invitation-only event brought together over 250 key decision-makers from across the textile and apparel value chain, including brands, manufacturers, exporters, policymakers, international buying houses, startups, and innovators. The conclave received support from the Global Alliance For Textile Sustainability Council (GATS), Brands & Sourcing Leaders Association, and UNIDO. It aimed to strengthen industry alignment on integrating sustainability into core business operations.

Santosh Katariya, President, CMAI, said,
“The ECO-STITCH Conclave has reaffirmed that the industry is ready to move from intent to implementation. The quality of discussions, combined with the strong participation across stakeholders, reflects a collective commitment to embedding sustainability at the core of how we design, source and manufacture. This is the beginning of a long-term movement to build a more responsible and globally competitive Indian apparel ecosystem.”

Naveen Sainani, Hon. General Secretary & Chairman, ESG Committee, CMAI, noted:
“What sets ECO-STITCH apart is its focus on actionable pathways. The exchange of real experiences, solutions and business-led approaches has created a strong foundation for accelerating sustainability adoption across the industry.”

A key feature of the conclave was the 3R Zones—Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle—demonstrating practical applications of circularity. These included examples such as upcycled collections and waste-to-wardrobe supply chains. An Automation and AI Showcase was also presented, highlighting the role of technology in manufacturing efficiency, traceability, and responsible production.

The event was structured as an action-oriented platform with leadership panels and discussions on topics including Future Ready India: Competing in a Sustainable Global Economy; Leading the Shift: CEOs Building India’s Most Trusted Supply Chains; Sustainable, Sellable, Scalable: India’s Brand Adoption Playbook; UNIDO & India Programs: One UN + Cluster Exchange Mechanism; Scaling Brands Globally: The Sustainability Imperative; Green Finance & Social Inclusion; and AI & Tech in Fashion.

Participants in panel discussions included Roop Rashi - Khadi & Village Inds. Comm., Dr. Naresh Tyagi – ABFRL, Subir Mukherjee – Bhaskar Denim, Abhishek Raj – Lacoste, Vineet Gautam - 91 Brands, Puneet Dudeja – WGSN, Dr Tapan K Rout – (Director – Textile Committee, Ministry of Textiles), Parvinder Kadyan, GATS, T. Jayaraman – Classic Polo, Dr. Pankaj Kumar – UNIDO, Tanmeet Thukral – World Bank Group, Sunder Belani – Ramsons, Sanjay Shukla & Tapan Bansal – BSL, Dr. Smita Honade Bait – ZDHC, Darshana Gajare – Reliance Brands/SU.RE, Raja Harbinder Singh – Pantaloon, Vinod Sharma – Country Manager, OVS, Manmohan Singh – Grasim, Anand Muthuswamy - Tirupur Exporters Association, Kritika Chouhan - Shahi Exports, Naveen Sainani, among others.

Smt. Roop Rashi, CEO, Khadi and Village Industries Commission, said, “Khadi by default is among the most resource-efficient systems as it uses much less water and energy. So, the question is: how do we bring in the new-gen factor and new-gen aspiration for Khadi? We need to create a demand pull, and design is the most important element in drawing the new generation towards Khadi. We have created a Centre of Excellence for Khadi, and launched “Navu Khadi” initiative last year.”

Dr. Pankaj Kumar, National Project Coordinator, UNIDO, highlighted, “UNIDO has developed a technology innovation roadmap, which has one common platform to see all the information available, and enables connect to the Textile Committee as well as the UNIDO for whatever support anyone needs, whether technical or financial. Textile is the only sector where we need to think about energy, environment, UN empowerment, and land improvement. So the idea is support for clusters through a clustered approach.”

Dr. Naresh Tyagi, Chief Sustainability Officer, ABFRL, said, “India as a country matters immensely because, as we move towards becoming the third-largest economy after the US and China, textiles will be one of the key contributors. In this context, adopting sustainability in textile and apparel manufacturing processes becomes even more imperative. Therefore, this is a significant moment for us to participate and scale our efforts in a larger, more impactful way.”

Kritika Chauhan of Shahi Exports said, “We often think that circularity is something that comes at the grave stage, at the end of the life cycle. However, circularity starts when your material is actually very simple in the beginning.”

The conclave also marked the launch of the CMAI SU.RE Sustainability Awards, recognising contributions across the textile and apparel value chain. Award recipients included Indo Era; Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail Ltd.; KS Spinning Mills Pvt. Ltd.; Sulochana Cotton Spinning Mills Pvt. Ltd.; Bhaskar Denim; HSN Ecotex; Spykar Lifestyles Pvt. Ltd.; Bunko Junko; Sowtex; Birla Cellulose; MKS Otterri Pvt. Ltd.; Green Story; Aadi Sustainability Solutions Pvt. Ltd.; ReCircle; RePut.ai; Manmohan Singh, VP, Grasim; Bhagwan Enterprise Textiles Pvt. Ltd.; Ed-a-Mamma; Enviu; Chirag Tyagi; Dr. Pankaj Kumar; Gokul Texprints Pvt. Ltd.; and Canvaloop Fibre Pvt. Ltd.

The jury panel included Dr. Naresh Tyagi, CSO, ABFRL; Sanjay Rastogi, Business Head, Trent Ltd.; Radhika Kaul, Chief of Staff, UN RCO India; Manohar Samuel, SU.RE; Parvinder Kadyan, Chairman, GATS; Naveen Sainani; Ankur Gadia, Vice President, CMAI; Darshana Gajare, Head of Sustainability, Lakmé Fashion Week, SU.RE, Circular Design Challenge; and Prof. (Dr.) Meenakshi Tomar, Vice Dean, Jindal Global Business School.

The event also featured a Sustainable Fashion Showcase with eight curated sequences combining AI-led design, sustainable materials, and Indian craft practices. Participating institutions included NIFT Bengaluru, JD Institute of Fashion Technology, SOFT Pune, and IDT Surat.

The ECO-STITCH Conclave brought together stakeholders from MSMEs to large exporters, brands, designers, and technology providers to facilitate collaboration and promote sustainability as an integrated industry priority.