Eco-friendly fabric gradually finding market in Chattisgarh, though it’s still early days

Following the ban imposed on use of flex PVC in the state of Chattisgarh at the behest of National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) directive, outdoor media owners in the state have been looking at alternative media and materials that are eco-friendly. Printers like Raghav Printer are now opting for fabric material to print on. Girish Awadhiya of the Raipur-based printer told Media4Growth that they are now undertaking printing on fabric by changing the printer heads of HP digital printing machines.

While the demand for fabric prints is still negligible, Girish is relieved that there is some traction for the business. Most of the demand is coming in for short formats like backlit and frontlit displays. “For hoardings we are printing a maximum of 10 feet size. For larger formats, the fabric will have to stitched together.”

He reckons that the fabric material is definitely not strong as PVC and not capable of bearing high wind pressures. He believes that the urban authorities should pro-actively promote alternative materials for outdoor advertising, and the industry itself should launch awareness initiatives with regard to use of eco-friendly materials.