The Vegetable Hand-block Kalamkari Printers’ Association has passed a resolution and circulated among its members appealing all of them and the stakeholders to ban the practice of screen printing, citing impact on quality of Kalamkari productions, reputation and market earned in the country and abroad by the rural industry.
The Pedana-based Association secretary Sajja Nageswara Rao has appealed to the people involved in the art form to stop encouraging screen printing in response to a newsreport in The Hindu – ‘Commerce Ministry keen to revive Kalamkari’ - appearing on March 18.
On March 18 a circular signed by Mr. Nageswara Rao was issued to the `strategic' stakeholders, members of the association and Kalamkari exporters. It reads as follows: “The Vegetable Hand-block Kalamkari Printers’ Association appeals to the people concerned to help withdraw screen printing. The Government of India obtained reports over violation of Geographical Indication Registry’s Tag guidelines in Kalamkari industry”.
Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Nageswara Rao on Friday added that action has been taken to persuade the Kalamkari units, which are resorting to screen printing instead of hand-block printing, to stop the practice. “A special meet will be held soon to initiate action to ban screen printing in order to revive our art form”, he said.
P.B.L. Nagendra, who resigned as president of the Printers’ Association citing unnatural Kalamkari processing and production initiatives, opined that the industry was on the verge of extinction given the present condition of natural process and preparations of colours involved in it.
In 2014, Professor N. Lalitha of Gujarat Institute of Development Research has conducted a study on ‘GI tag to Kalamkari-impact on industry and artisans’ has reportedly documented present scenario of the industry and violation of the GI Tag guidelines.
