Textile veteran Arun Jariwala passes away

Textile veteran Arun Jariwala passes away Surat: A pall of gloom descended on the textile industry on Saturday following the demise of veteran industry leader, Arun Jariwala at the age of 86. Also known as the 'bhismapitamah' of man-made fabric (MMF) sector, Jariwala passed away here on Saturday after long illness. Jariwala is survived by his 81-year-old wife Asha Jariwala and 53-year-old

son, Ketan Jariwala. His funeral was attend by hundreds of people and many leading personalities from the city's diamond and textile sectors.

He was the longest serving chairman of the Federation of Indian Art Silk Weaving Industry (FIASWI) for around 23 years and one of the pioneers for establishing the Surat Art Silk Cloth Producers' Cooperative Society Limited. He was also the president of the Man Made Textile Research Association (MANTRA) and the Surat Technical Education and Research Society (STERS).

Apart from this Jariwala was associated with dozens of trusts and social institutions. Jariwala was also on various committees of the Ministry of Textile for the upliftment of the textile sector including the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFs)

Dinesh Zaveri, a senior textile leader and secretary of MANTRA said, "It is a big loss to the Art Silk industry in the country. Arunbhai was always seen in the high esteem among the textile circles in the country. He has worked tirelessly throughout his life-time for providing greater heights to the MMF industry."