Textile Minister Smriti Irani launches sustainability project with 16 fashion brands

Sixteen retail fashion brands have signed the Su.Re (sustainability resolution) project launched by the Textile Ministry, IMG Reliance and Clothing Manufacturers Association Of India (CMAI).

Textile Minister Smriti Irani launched the project, in association with the UN, on Thursday at the Lakme Fashion Week Winter/Festive 2019 being held here.

Retail brands like Spykar, Westside, Trends, Shoppers Stop, fbb, House of Anita Dogre and Lifestyle and Max joined the movement that aims to develop sustainable sourcing policy for consistent prioritising and utilising certified raw materials that have a positive impact on the environment.

In her address at the event which was also attended by Renata Lok-Dessallien, UN Resident Coordinator in India, Irani said: “Never before in a population our size has voluntarily driven the retail force of India and fashion elite along with the government to come together at one platform. That this has happened voluntarily makes me proud. On October 2, we shall step into the 150th year of Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday. Gandhi said to the world, ‘be the change you want to be’. And today, the resolution on sustainability is a reflective of that very thought of the Mahatma.”

She said that sustainability is the fourth criteria for 57 per cent of the consumers of the apparel and design industry. “This (project) makes it not only responsible business but also smart business. This project will impact worth Rs 30,000 crore in the market. Everything that we consume, we must consume responsibly.”

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Jaspreet Chandok, Vice President and Head of Fashion, IMG Reliance, said: “This is a true confluence of what we want to stand for in fashion in the country which is a melting point of ideas that brings transformational change. Today is a major step towards that change with the launch of Su.Re which is the first and the largest initiative by the fashion industry.

“This initiative is just a start point. In the next five years, it will reach millions and millions of garments in the country turning from non-sustainable resources to sustainable resources.”