The 12th international textile conference organized by Textile Association of India (TAI) kicked off today in Nagpur. The event will be held for two days, January 17 and 18. The meeting will have 50 speakers, including delegates from Bangladesh and China. Representatives of almost 200 companies in this sector will take part in the event, said a TAI official.

The meet will be inaugurated by union minister of transport and shipping Nitin Gadkari with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis as the keynote speaker on the opening day. The state minister for industries Subhash Desai and minister for power Chandrashekhhar Bawankule will speak during the valedictory function.

The focus of the textile conference will be on cotton, textile and apparel. Ideas on bringing cotton farming in line with the trends in end-use industry will be discussed during the conference.

The delegates will also dwell on the current plunge faced by the industry due to a cut in cotton off take by China. However, this is considered to be only a temporary phenomenon.

Apart from stakeholders from the industry, progressive cotton growers have also been invited for the two-day event.

The industry is focusing on setting up processing units for value addition in cotton and textile fabric.