New Delhi, July 20: ReFiber, powered by OterRi, unveiled its flagship white paper, Mumbai Textile Circular Economy Demonstration Project, at Bharat Tex 2026, presenting one of India’s first technology-enabled, city-scale textile circularity models.
Launched on World Environment Day 2026 at the World Trade Center Mumbai, the project was implemented by OterRi in collaboration with Tisser, the Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI), UNIDO, World Trade Center Mumbai and Lions International. The initiative integrates doorstep textile collection, digital traceability, women-led upcycling and responsible recycling into a single ecosystem.
According to the white paper, the Mumbai demonstration recovered 2.7 tonnes of post-consumer textiles, fulfilled 275 collection orders and engaged 257 citizens through 15 laundry partners across 28 branches. The report also identifies six key challenges to textile circularity in India while outlining scalable solutions through technology, organised collection systems and multi-stakeholder collaboration.
ReFiber Chairman Shrikant Bhangdiya said the initiative aims to transform post-consumer textile waste into a valuable resource by building a transparent, traceable and scalable circular economy ecosystem. He added that the Navi Mumbai pilot demonstrated how technology and citizen participation can generate environmental, social and economic benefits.
COO Manoj Wanvari said the project marks a major step towards developing a nationwide textile circularity model powered by digital traceability and organised collection networks.
The white paper was presented to senior policymakers, industry leaders and representatives from the Ministry of Textiles, UNIDO, CMAI, GATS, and the governments of Nagaland and Karnataka. ReFiber plans to expand the model across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, Maharashtra and eventually across India.
