The Indian textile industry, started in 1850s, was still in a primitive craft stage till 1930s. Little formal education, rule of thumb solutions to problems, secrecy by mills and isolation of technicians were rampant. Some small groups like Saturday Textile Club of Bombay and Textile Brotherhood at Ahmedabad existed on a small local scale. Ten visionary technocrats brought 126 technicians and managers together on Sunday, the 9th April 1939 to establish the Textile Association (India); a forum for free exchange of technical and other information in a spirit of fellowship and cooperation.