Bharat Tex 2026 opened in New Delhi on Tuesday, bringing together India's textile value chain with over 1,600 exhibitors, 7,000 buyers and participants from 14 countries. The four-day event, which runs until July 17, features international exhibitors from the US, UK, Japan, Portugal, Spain, New Zealand, South Korea, South Africa and Nepal, alongside representatives from the United Nations and the European Union. As reported by Fibre2Fashion, the event is expected to facilitate over 4,000 B2B meetings, more than 100 business-to-government (B2G) meetings and the signing of 30-plus memoranda of understanding (MoUs) across trade, investment, sustainability, technology and market access. Union Minister of Textiles Shri Giriraj Singh inaugurated the event, joined by Minister of State for Textiles Pabitra Margherita, Textiles Secretary Neelam Shami Rao, and senior government officials.
The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) and the European Apparel and Textile Confederation (EURATEX) have established the EU-India Textile and Apparel Dialogue (TAD) to support effective implementation of the India-EU Free Trade Agreement. According to reports from Business Standard, this bilateral industry platform aims to help industry stakeholders support balanced implementation of the textile and apparel sector provisions in the proposed FTA. The formal signing of the TAD mandate between CITI and EURATEX, along with the first meeting of the joint CITI-EURATEX monitoring committee, took place at Bharat Tex 2026 in New Delhi on Tuesday.
The establishment of TAD assumes importance following India and the EU concluding FTA negotiations in January 2026, with the India-EU trade deal expected to be signed later this year. As reported by Business Standard, CITI Chairman Ashwin Chandran emphasized the timing significance. The European Union has been a key export destination for India's textile and apparel industry, with the EU being the second-largest market for India's textile and apparel exports in 2025. Textile and apparel exports from India to the EU stood at $7.6 billion in 2025, however, Indian textile and apparel exporters have historically operated at a tariff disadvantage compared to several competing countries that enjoy preferential access to the EU market.
The CITI-EURATEX initiative will provide a structured forum for dialogue between industry representatives to promote reciprocal market access, resilient value chains, industrial competitiveness, and sustainable growth. The platform is designed to serve as an effective mechanism for the textile and apparel industry to present views on how the free trade agreement can benefit businesses in both India and the 27-nation EU bloc. According to Fibre2Fashion, Bharat Tex 2026 features more than 350 speakers from over 20 countries participating in over 100 knowledge sessions, including panel discussions, roundtables, masterclasses and state sessions covering trade, sustainability, Industry 5.0, innovation, technical textiles and global sourcing. The event also hosts the CITI Textile Sustainability Awards 2026 and deploys AI-enabled digital platforms for exhibitor discovery, business matchmaking and meeting scheduling.
