TEXTILE REVIEW celebrated the first anniversary in a style and with the gusto that made this event a special occasion. Celebrated with a two days conference TEXCELLENCE 2007 which would now become a yearly event the unique feature of these celebrations was also the Special Issue on Technical Textiles which contained over 200 pages of highly focused information on this sunrise sector in the textile industry contributed by about 40 renowned experts from across the globe. To my knowledge this is first of its kind of a compilation published by any such publication in India. The fact that the contributories to this issue are the leading experts in their own right and the companies / organizations they represent enjoy a great reputation amongst the professional world in itself is the U.S.P. for this special issue. Released at the hands of the Union Textile Minister Hon'ble Shri Shankersinh Vaghela during the Inaugural Session of TEXCELLENCE 2007 therefore was of a special significance. The issue covering topics right from Smart Textiles to Wearable Electronics and Geotextiles to Light Emitting and Antidepressant Clothes is packed with a wealth of information compiled to a consistent and pain staking effort of almost eight months. This was therefore a befitting finale to the eventful journey of TEXTILE REVIEW completing the first year of its publication. This was the year of great significance as the publication made a sincere effort to carve out a niche amongst similar other publications and emerge as a unique magazine catering to the highly diverse textile sector. It was a matter of great satisfaction for the team working to make this publication stand out distinctly and in no small measure this joy and satisfaction could also be attributed to all those contributories whose sincere and scholastic efforts lent the publication a tremendous reference value and credibility. This is therefore a time to feel happy and also say a "Big Thank You" to everybody who helped us achieving this landmark.

TEXCELLENCE 2007 was also a great event because it attracted a significant participation not only from the cross section of the industry but also from the field of academics and administration. The exhibition organized on this occasion brought together the facilities offered by various PSUs functioning under the Union Textile Ministry under one roof and therefore it served as a great exposition not only for the participants but also for all those who visited this exhibition. The conference focused on presenting a review of the present scenario in the textile sector and also attempted to predict the emerging future covering the important aspect of various facets concerning the textile sector like training and manpower needs, fashion trends and design etc. The Union Textile Minister in his address focussed on the special incentive schemes provided to the textile sector like TUFS. His special observation was regarding India surpassing USA in cotton production as a major event this year because of the bumper harvest likely this season. The Textile Commissioner also supplemented this observation indicating that the need for organic cotton is going to be increasing over the years and it is time that the Indian exporters also turn their attention to the countries like Japan and Canada where the strengthening of rupee against the dollar may not be much of a hindrance.

A common tone at the conference was that textile as a field has a tremendous scope. On one hand there are short term problems may be because of strengthening of our currency. The Minister promised to find some help by a suitable package of incentives to neutralise the disadvantage to the extent possible. The Textile Commissioner on the other hand extending the argument gave a further hint regarding looking towards fresh avenues by entering the markets hitherto not attended by us like Japan. There was also a mention about increasing scope for organic cotton as well as organic textiles as value added products. The technical and smart textiles on the other hand were considered to be the future where high-tech applications are involved.

Another important observation made at the conference was concerning a specialised training for meeting with the manpower requirements and also the quality for the growing field of readymade garments and apparels. As the trend is going to change towards branded apparels soon the tailor made clothes would become a domain of the rich. In this changing scenario the organised retailing and brand building are going to be the buzz words for the textile sector.

All these topics expertly presented and also debated through the interactive sessions made TEXCELLENCE2007 a memorable event. At the end of a two days very well attended national conference organized in collaboration with the premier local management association - Ahmedabad Management Association became a run away success. I do not think there could have been a better finale to the completion of the very first year of an eventful existence.

I am sure this is just a beginning of our journey towards the excellence. It is always said - well begun is half done!