Union minister Smriti Irani on Sunday inaugurated the eighth edition of India International Silk Fair, considered to be the country’s biggest silk fair, to be held between 31 January to February 4.
The event is being held virtually due to COVID-19 pandemic.
Inaugurating the fair virtually, Irani stated that more than 200 overseas buyers have already registered and equal number of their representatives in India shall be interacting on virtual platform with more than 100 renowned and big Indian companies manufacturing and trading silk and silk blended products, an official statement said.
The Textiles Minister called upon the exhibitors and overseas buyers to take part in this initiative to celebrate the beauty and vibrancy of Indian silk.
“The challenges posed before the exporters during COVID-19 pandemic have led the Government and trade to look for an alternate business module and organising Silk Fair by the Council on Virtual mode is maiden initiative and is expected to revive business contacts with overseas trading partners,” the Textiles Ministry statement said.
India International Silk Fair is the Sourcing Fair for silk and silk blend products organised by the Indian Silk Export Promotion Council under the aegis of Ministry of Textiles and sponsored by Department of Commerce.
India has long history of silk production and is the second largest producer of silk in the world. It is also the only country globally which produces all the four major varieties of silk i.E. Mulberry, Eri, Tassar, and Muga. India has around 11 Geographical Indications such as Pochampally Ikat, Chanderpaul Silk, Mysore Silk, Kanchipuram Silk, Muga Silk, Salem Silk, ArniSilk,Champa Silk, Bhagalpur Silk, Banaras Brocade and Sarees etc.