NIFT Jorhat

About NIFT Jorhat

NIFT Jorhat was established in 2010 and is located in upper Assam, a region that produces three of India's most distinctive and globally prized silk varieties: Muga, Eri, and Pat silk. No other NIFT campus in the country has this concentration of native silk production within its immediate geographic context. The campus trains designers who understand silk from fibre to fabric, a depth of knowledge that is increasingly valuable as global fashion markets shift toward natural fibre luxury and sustainable production.

Muga silk, produced by the antheraea assamensis silkworm native to Assam, is unique in the world: no other region produces it. Its natural golden-amber colour requires no dyeing and deepens with age, making antique Muga sarees collector's items. Eri silk, also called peace silk or Ahimsa silk because the moth is allowed to emerge before the cocoon is processed, is produced from the philosamia ricini silkworm fed on castor leaves. Its soft, wool-like texture and sustainable production method have made it globally significant in ethical and sustainable fashion. Pat silk produces a bright white, lustrous fabric used for traditional Assamese mekhela chadors and increasingly for contemporary design.

NIFT Jorhat offers 3 B.Des programmes: Fashion Design, Textile Design, and Fashion Communication. The B.Des intake is 80 seats per year. The Textile Design programme has a direct and compelling regional rationale: students work in a state that produces world-class natural silk varieties grown, processed, and woven within the community surrounding the campus. The campus is the only NIFT in upper Assam and serves students from Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Nagaland.

The 4-year B.Des fee ranges from Rs 7 to 9 lakhs, among the lower end of the NIFT fee spectrum. Jorhat's cost of living is modest, making total education cost significantly below metro campuses. Admission follows the standard NIFT entrance exam via NTA: GAT, CAT, and Situation Test. Applications open in November at exams.nta.nic.in/niftee.

NIFT Jorhat graduates pursue careers in Muga silk product development, Eri silk sustainable fashion labels, silk weaving design and promotion for the Assam government's sericulture bodies, and the growing northeastern Indian fashion market. Several alumni have established labels focused on Muga and Eri silk that sell to domestic and international buyers interested in luxury natural fibres and ethical production. The campus has connections with the Central Silk Board's regional office and with Assam's Silk Mark certification bodies.

For students fascinated by natural silk, sustainable fibre design, or the intersection of Assamese tradition with contemporary fashion, NIFT Jorhat provides a genuinely irreplaceable education context. The three native silk varieties of Assam, available nowhere else in the world in this combination, represent a design resource that students can build an entire career around.