Govt Unveils Handloom Hackathon 2026 Ahead of National Handloom Day

New Delhi, Jul 8 (KNN) The Office of the Development Commissioner (Handlooms), under the Ministry of Textiles, has launched Handloom Hackathon 2026 – "Weaving Innovation", a national innovation challenge aimed at promoting technology-driven and sustainable solutions for India's handloom sector.

Organised as part of the National Handloom Day 2026 celebrations, the hackathon invites students, weavers, artisans, designers, researchers, startups, entrepreneurs and technology professionals to develop innovative solutions across areas such as product design, sustainability, digital technologies, market access, branding, supply chain efficiency, productivity and business development.

The Grand Finale will be held on August 1, 2026, at the Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer (FITT), IIT Delhi, where shortlisted teams will present their solutions before a jury comprising experts from academia, industry, design, technology and the handloom sector.

Development Commissioner (Handlooms) Dr. M. Beena said the initiative aims to bring together the creativity of India's youth and the expertise of the handloom ecosystem to develop practical and scalable solutions for the sector.

The ministry said selected ideas may be considered for mentoring, incubation and further development in collaboration with partner institutions.

Online registrations are open until July 20, 2026.

(KNN Bureau)