Union Minister of Textiles Shri Giriraj Singh Launches ‘Paridhi 24×25’: A New Era for Indian Fashion and Skill Development

Introduction

• Union Minister of Textiles Shri Giriraj Singh and Union Minister of State for External Affairs & Textiles Shri Pabitra Margherita formally launched India-specific fashion trend book Paridhi 24×25 as well as the India focused bilingual web portal VisioNxt on 5th September 2024.
• This intervention is a clear indication that India is set to join the niche league with players in the area of fashion forecasting and textiles.
• Besides, NIFT’s Begusarai Extension Centre was also inaugurated during the event and NIFT also signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with National Skill Development Council (NSDC) showing that India is serious about the skills development in textile sector.

A New Era in Fashion Forecasting: Launch of Paridhi 24×25

• The new Indian fashion trend book Paridhi 24×25 is, thus, the much-needed fashion trend bible for the Indian fashion industry which charts out a new direction by unveiling a new language in Indian fashion and thus grows a new cadre of Indian talents who do not solely rely on international trend forecasting agencies.
• This is done through the bilingual web portal of VisioNxt which provides English and Hindi speaking user’s invoke with position data, research papers and trend reports.

Since its inception, VisioNxt has produced:

• Over 60 micro-trend reports
• 10+ close to season fashion trend reports
• 3+ research papers
• The first special book of AI Taxonomy deals with Indian wear categories

• Such a large number of resources not only consolidates India’s position in the international fashion market but also provides domestic participants including manufacturers, weavers, designers, and retailers, with trend information for realizing the Indian market in real-time.
• By applying AI With EI VisioNxt is developing a geo-specific and culturally sensitive approach to forecasting that mirrors the rich and complex environment in India.

India’s First AI Taxonomy for Fashion Trends

• Also unique, during the event there was the launch of the India’s first AI Taxonomy book pertaining to Indian fashion wear categories.
• The book is under the umbrella of the VisioNxt to combine the strengths of India’s information technology industry with its textile industry – AI with artistry.
• This pioneering work will enable Indian designers and fashion brands to gain a competitive advantage and help them identify trends that are unique for India, its cultural, socio-economic and asthetic diversities and shifting consumers’ tastes.
• Currently, India relies on a few global agencies to forecast the trend in fashion market; however, with VisioNxt positioning India amongst the top few countries in this field, the involvement is likely to decline significantly.
• This will lead to product that offers specialized insights about India and meet the increasing and evolving fashion retail market of India.

Inauguration of NIFT’s Begusarai Extension Centre

• To this excitement, there was also the inauguration of extension centre for NIFT – Begusarai in where India step forward in the direction of being inclusive for growth and development along with skill development.
• As pointed out by Shri Giriraj Singh, the new centre would play an important role of ensuring that isolate society gets access to quality training and education in fabricated and fashion designing.
• The newly formed Begusarai Extension Centre started its functional by organizing a three days training programme where it trained the attendants in basic sewing techniques and garment construction.
• From the Jeevika self-help group, 31 women attended the workshop and were taught simple cutting and sewing skills.
• The practical session was a huge success as all those who attended wanted to put what they learnt into practice in as far as improving the level of skill displayed in the production of artefacts in the industry is concerned.
• The Union Minister of Textiles also pointed out that the centre would endeavour to create an effective demand of craft based workforce, which is critical to sustaining growth of fashion industry in India.
• This would further the realization of India’s desire to become the textilized garment factory to the world, as envisaged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the 2017 Global Textile Summit, where he stressed on the need to have trend analytics tailored made for the Indian market.

The Strategic MoU between NIFT and NSDC

• At the occasion of inauguration, NIFT has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Skill Development Council (NSDC).
• Hoping to proceed to a higher level of cooperation in the sphere of skill building and focusing on bringing in talented youth in the textile industry of India in fashion design related courses.
• The MoU focuses on the ability of India to ensure that its human resource for employment is competent in fashion and textile business.
• Mr. Giriraj Singh pointed out that, with the fashion education leadership of NIFT forragt and skill development objectives of NSDC, the requirements of the industry will be effectively met while offering sustainable employment to disadvantaged section in the textiles.

VisioNxt: Pioneering Fashion Forecasting in India

• The story behind VisioNxt was the realization that the Indian fashion industry lacks easy access to real-time trend information.
• Created in 2017 after the Global Textile Summit, INDITEX is the first fashion conglomerate to have an India-focused full-fledged fashion forecast platform which should represent India’s diverse multiculturalism and textile history in global fashion.
• It is with these trends and insights in which VisioNxt plays a significant role in ensuring the weavers, designers and manufacturers to level up in the global market and better cater to India Market.
• Furthermore, the integration of AI and EI into VisioNxt addresses customers’ demand for culturally valid predictions based on vast amounts of data, providing a truer picture of the new India fashion environment.

Conclusion: New opportunities for the textile and fashion industry: India

• That’s why Paridhi 24×25 along with the inauguration of the NIFT Begusarai Extension Centre is unveiled as an indicator of a brand new chapter in Indian textile and fashion sphere.
• These policies such as VisioNxt are therefore ideal for the India government to ensure that local players are ready for the international market along at the same time ensuring that the suffering sections in the society are empowered.
• Indian scoping into the fashion forecasting area will keep the country well-positioned to be among the leading countries offering insights on the trends that will define the future
• The continuous endeavour to build skills along the line of the collaboration between NIFT and NSDC to promote the skills training necessary as the job market prepares for the future.

FAQS

Q1: What is Paridhi 24×25?

Ans: Paridhi 24×25 is an India-specific fashion trend book launched by Union Minister of Textiles Shri Giriraj Singh. It provides bilingual insights (in Hindi and English) on the latest fashion trends, particularly focusing on the Indian market.

Q2: What is the VisioNxt web portal?

Ans: The VisioNxt web portal is a bilingual platform that offers access to trend insights, micro-reports, research papers, and the first-ever AI Taxonomy book for Indian wear. It is designed to help fashion stakeholders in India understand and predict fashion trends.

Q3: Why is Paridhi 24×25 significant for the Indian fashion industry?

Ans: Paridhi 24×25 reduces India’s dependence on international fashion trend agencies by offering India-specific insights. It helps showcase Indian fashion vocabulary and identity, making India a leader in the global fashion forecasting space.