Sophisticated facilities for testing textile qualities at the laboratory of the Textile Committee (TC) unit here under the Textile Ministry remain underutilised because of lack of awareness among industry and the authorities concerned. Though the TC lab has state-of-the art equipment for testing qualities of textiles and other products, they are yet to be fully utilised because of lack of awareness in the State about the facilities. The facilities at the lab ranged from chromatographic equipment for measuring even minute presence of toxic chemicals in textile products to weather-o-metre that can test the colour fastness of fabrics.
Though the quality testing in the laboratory is mandatory for textile exports as most of the importing countries have either banned or restricted the use of many chemicals in the dyes used in textiles, textile products sold in the domestic market are not free from toxic chemicals because of the absence of testing facilities and lack of awareness in the industry.
Hazardous chemicals
‘‘Hazardous chemicals such as different types of arryl amines, penta chlorophenon, tetra chlorophenol, various types of phthalates, heavy metals, and formaldehyde that are either banned in textile products or restricted,’’ assistant director of the TC K.C. Jayarajan said. The testing equipment in the laboratory could recognise the presence of such chemicals even in the micro measure of parts per million, he said. Though the laboratory facilities were mainly for textile industry, they could be utilised for testing products in other industries such as rubber and coir, he said.
Though the TC had been entrusted by the government to examine the quality of fabrics of the uniform for students in government and aided schools under the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, many schools had used the TC certificate they received in the first year of the scheme’s enforcement, sources in the TC said. The TC laboratory testing should be made mandatory for textile products procured by State government agencies, they added. The laboratory here is accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) and hence the reports issued by the lab are valid in more than 30 countries.
