Ranjan K Baruah
One of the basic needs for any human being is clothes. From basic need to luxury, clothing has changed over the years. From tradition to modern age, textile has been important parts of our lives and an important part in our society. Clothes are important not only to wear but for many other purposes. A textile is a flexible material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibers (yarn or thread). Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, hemp, or other materials to produce long strands. Textiles are formed by weaving, knitting, crocheting, knotting, tatting, felting, or braiding.
India’s textiles sector is one of the oldest industries in Indian economy dating back several centuries. India’s textile and apparel exports stood at US$ 38.70 billion in FY19 and is expected to increase to US$ 82.00 billion by 2021 from US$ 11.92 billion in FY20 (up to July 2019). Lakhs of individuals and families are involved in textile industry which starts from basic handloom to big power looms production.
The Indian government has come up with a number of export promotion policies for the textiles sector. It has also allowed Foreign Direct Investment too which bring more opportunities to people engaged in this sector. Different initiatives and existing programmes can be learned from the websites of Ministry of Textile. The textile industry in India traditionally, after agriculture, is the only industry that has generated huge employment for both skilled and unskilled labour in textiles. The textile industry continues to be the second-largest employment generating sector in India
With these statistics we can imagine the career opportunity in the field of textile in India. Career starts from individual weavers to people engaged in big industries. Career opportunities may be related to technical line like studying engineering courses or diploma like polytechnic courses and others like textile design which is one of the most creative career options for our young people.
In today’s edition we shall mention about textile engineering as one of the career options.
Textile engineering deals with the use of scientific and engineering principles to the design and manages of all aspects of fiber, textile, apparel processes, products, and machinery. These comprise natural and man-made materials, interface of materials with machines, safety and health, energy preservation, and waste and pollution control. A textile engineer thus works with textile materials which include fibers, yarns, fabrics, etc.
Courses related to textile engineering include degrees as well as diplomas like polytechnic courses. It includes courses like BE, B Tech, ME, M Tech and Diploma Programmes. IIT Delhi has Department of Textile Technology and there are many other government and private colleges that offer the course related to textile engineering. After passing out or finishing the course aspirants get opportunity to join the textile industry in different capacities. For the initiatives and activities of government related to textile one may get the update from ministry’s website.
Apart from joining any corporate or industries one may also choose to become self employed and contribute in the promotion of activities related to textiles. In the North Easter region there are scopes as different communities have different handlooms and other products.
There are options to modify them and get global market for local products. Textile engineers may think of the same and get themselves engaged in activities which promote textiles of the region. One must remember that mere academic qualification may not lead to sustainable job but qualification and possess of employability skills shall certainly lead one to sustainable jobs .
(Ranjan K Baruah is a career mentor, motivational speaker and skill trainer and can be reached at 8473943734 or
[email protected])