Giving Women Job Opportunities and Providing Them Sustainable Subsistence with DESCAT, Keshav Sharma

In the year 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on people’s lives. The year 2021 was no exception. Regardless of the difficulties, individuals from all walks of life banded together to assist one another during these trying times.
Keshav Sharma, the Founder, and CEO of Dev Ethical Sustainable Crafts & Textiles (DESCAT), based in Uttrakhand, is one of them. It is a business-to-business social enterprise with the primary purpose of lowering the textile industry’s carbon footprint by giving natural colored handspun yarn, handloom knitted fabric, and home and fashion accessories to slow fashion designers in order to reach the final goal.

Keshav graduated from GCIT Kanpur with a bachelor’s degree in textile chemistry and TIT Bhiwani with a master’s degree in textile chemistry. While working as a natural fiber consultant for the Uttarakhand government, Keshav became aware of the multitude of untapped resources in the region where he grew up. He was determined to make his state self-sustaining by utilizing natural resources to create and support local jobs.
He opted to submit his yarn at the climate collective startup enclave after utilizing his network to develop a grass fiber that is commonly used in the region. He was selected for the KIIT incubation round after using his network to generate a grass fiber that is commonly used in the region. The team attended the IIT Mandi Explorer program, where he met Anuj Sharma of Alsisar. This resulted in the establishment of Dev Ethical Sustainable Crafts & Textiles, Uttarakhand, in 2018. (DESCAT).

DESCAT primarily distributes fabric to companies that utilize it to create retail products and apparel. DESCAT UK also offers fibers to a variety of firms that use them to make their own fabric blends. More than 1,000 women have gained employment as a result of his business. His startup has also received funding from the Himachal Pradesh government, as well as friends and family, and is backed by a number of industry foundations.