The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) is the first city in India to undertake a post-consumer textile upcycling project thanks to an inventive initiative to upcycle used garments.
As part of this effort, residents can donate usable clothing items such as pants, shirts, jackets, dresses, children’s apparel, blankets, bedsheets, and towels. However, soiled textiles, medical waste, sanitary products, and mattresses will not be accepted.
The project will turn used clothing into new products using handloom techniques, which will thereafter be promoted for sale. Women’s self-help organisations will be essential to the upcycling process, fostering sustainability and generating job opportunities.
To facilitate this initiative, NMMC has partnered with SBI Foundation Ltd., IDH India Hub Pvt. Ltd., and Tisser Artisan Trust, formalizing their collaboration through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The project was inaugurated on October 11, 2024, by the former Chief Minister and has since gained national recognition, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighting it at a recent event in New Delhi.
By creating a sustainable method for repurposing used clothing, this project tackles the growing problem of textile waste, lessening its negative effects on the environment and empowering craftspeople, especially women.
In the first phase, 250 housing societies in Navi Mumbai will receive dedicated collection bins for used clothing. So far, 49 bins have been installed across 47 societies, with more to follow. The collected textiles will be processed at the Textile Recycling Center in CBD Belapur.
By placing acceptable used clothing in the appropriate collection bins or at local 3R Centres, residents are invited to make a contribution.
Source: Construction World
