Craft of survival

October 24, 2014 12:54 am | Updated December 04, 2021 11:10 pm IST

The greatest disservice liberal opinion can do to the handloom sector is to romanticise the occupation without offering workable suggestions to improve the lives of artisans (“ >The craft of survival ,” Oct. 22). It is not a story about the pygmy handloom versus the mighty powerloom. It is basically a livelihood issue. The handlooms need market access with tools to reach out to the wider population rather than depending on seasonal and arbitrary government-mandated sales. It is a myth that technology is costly and will corrupt all home-based industries.

V.N. Mukundarajan,

Thiruvananthapuram

Even khadi, which may have something of a halo, is losing its charm due to neglect. The khadi movement was meant to spread awareness about self-reliance and freedom from imports. Unfortunately we have neglected the two key themes of Mahatma Gandhi — prohibition and khadi. The khadi movement was truly our first “Make in India” project. It needs to be revived and encouraged. Both khadi and the handloom industry are industries which need our sustained protection.

S.A. Srinivasa Sarma,

Hyderabad

In an era of globalisation where the demand for finished products is growing by leaps and bounds, there is an urgent need to upgrade our textile industry and increase production. In Karnataka’s case, under the Vidya Vikas scheme, the decision to use powerlooms will ensure speedy delivery of school uniforms. The skilled workforce in the handloom industry can be used to bring about a revolution.

Jiten Patnaik,

New Delhi

The ambiguity perpetuated by policymakers by putting handloom under the Textile Ministry and on a par with the mill and power loom sector is a clear indication of the intent of the state. If you are unclear as to what handloom is, the job of securing the interests of the sector remains bleak. It is not an exaggeration to state that 70 per cent of what is sold in our markets as handloom are actually powerloom products. That handloom has a brand name and special value in the market can be established by this single fact. However, the powers-that-be have no intention or interest whatsoever to make a distinction between handloom from imitations. In spite of five decades of continuous neglect, the sector supports 44 lakh weaver-families even today. It is the responsibility of civil society to ensure the proper implementation of the Handloom Reservation Act.

B. Syama Sundari,

Secunderabad

Only government intervention can revive the handloom and khadi sector. The pragmatic thing would be to make it compulsory for all government employees including teaching staff at all levels to wear handloom or khadi at least once a week. The simplicity of such an attire may help influence children. I still remember my primary schoolteachers, in the 1980s, who used to come to school on all days in white khadi.

Jijesh A.,

Kannur

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