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India ITME Unveils Bold Vision For India's Textile Engineering Future

• By  Textile Excellence
• July 28, 2026

India ITME isn't thinking bigger. It's thinking bolder.

As preparations gather pace for India's biggest textile machinery exhibition, the India ITME Society is expanding its ambition well beyond exhibition stands and machine demonstrations. The goal is to make the event the industry's most influential platform, not just for technology, but for investment, policy, collaboration and the future of Indian textile engineering.

"Technology will always remain our mainstay," says Ketan Sanghvi, Chairman of India ITME Society, and Director – Laxmi Looms. "But today the industry needs much more than technology."

That means global thought leaders will deliberate on the future of manufacturing and there will be dedicated sessions on sustainability and digitalisation.

And, for the first time, it means bringing governments, banks, buyers and manufacturers to the same table to unlock fresh investment into India's textile machinery sector.

But behind this bigger vision lies an even bigger challenge.

According to Mr Sanghvi, "India has the engineering talent. It has entrepreneurial spirit and it has one of the world's largest textile industries. Yet the country's textile machinery manufacturers continue to battle structural hurdles that make scaling up far harder than it should be.”

Mr. Sanghvi believes the industry has reached a point where it needs to stop thinking small.

“With nearly 3,500 manufacturers, most operating as MSMEs, the sector remains highly fragmented. Instead of thousands of small players competing individually, we need globally competitive champions - companies strengthened through consolidation, strategic partnerships, joint ventures and patient capital,” he believes.

Just as critical is building India's component ecosystem.

“Even today, manufacturers continue to depend on imports for key technologies such as servo motors, PLCs, precision bearings, dobbies and jacquards. Every imported component means higher costs, longer lead times, exposure to currency fluctuations and vulnerability to global supply chain disruptions.”

His solution?

“Encourage component manufacturing in India through targeted incentives, potentially extending PLI-style support to critical engineering components.”

He also points to what he sees as one of the industry's biggest contradictions. Domestic manufacturers often pay duty on imported components used to build machinery in India, while complete imported machines can enter under far more favourable duty structures.

"Why would anyone invest in manufacturing in India if it's cheaper to import?" is the question he believes policymakers must answer.

Yet the message isn't one of confrontation; it's one of collaboration.

The Chairman repeatedly stresses that textile machinery makers and textile manufacturers must work together more closely, giving Indian engineering companies the opportunity and the confidence to develop world-class machines tailored to industry needs instead of defaulting to imported technology.

That's the future India ITME wants to champion.

Because when the exhibition opens its doors, the spotlight won't just be on the latest machines. It will be on a far bigger question: Can India build the world's next textile engineering powerhouse? The India ITME Society believes the answer is yes - but only if industry, policymakers, and investors build that future together.

With nearly 3,500 manufacturers, most operating as MSMEs, the sector remains highly fragmented. Instead of thousands of small players competing individually, we need globally competitive champions - companies strengthened through consolidation, strategic partnerships, joint ventures and patient capital,” - Ketan Sanghvi