The Ministry said under the National Handloom Development Programme, financial assistance is provided to eligible handloom organisations/workers for upgraded looms and accessories.

By The Hindu Bureau

Statement from Ministry comes on a day that Congress leader Sonia Gandhi had argued in an article in The Hindu that the Centre had not done enough to take khadi to the global stage

In an apparent response to Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who said in an article in The Hindu on Tuesday that the Centre failed to build a global audience for the country’s handlooms, the Union Textile Ministry stated that it has undertaken various measures for promoting the handloom sector.
Without mentioning Ms. Gandhi’s arguments, the Centre said it has implemented several schemes, such as the National Handloom Development Programme and Raw Material Supply Scheme, to provide end-to-end support for promotion of handloom sector and welfare of handloom workers.
Ms. Gandhi had said in the article that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) continues to be a burden on handloom workers, with tax having been introduced on the final product as well as on raw materials (yarns, dyes, and chemicals). “Our workers’ consistent demands to exempt handlooms from GST have fallen on unsympathetic ears, even as surging costs, particularly of electricity and cotton fibre, squeeze them out,” she had argued.
The Ministry said under the National Handloom Development Programme, financial assistance is provided to eligible handloom organisations/workers for upgraded looms and accessories, solar lighting units, construction of worksheds, product and design development, technical and common infrastructure, marketing of handloom products in domestic/overseas markets, etc.
“Under Weavers’ MUDRA Loan/Concessional Credit Scheme, margin money assistance for individual weaver and handloom organisations; interest subvention and credit guarantee fees on loans for a period of three years are provided,” the Ministry said adding that life and accidental insurance cover, scholarships for higher education to the workers’ children are also given by the Centre.
“Handloom producers were facilitated by organising virtual fairs for showcasing handloom products for business-to-business buyers/exports for handloom Workers. Ten virtual fairs were organised in 2020-21 and 10 virtual fairs in 2021-22. Besides, 211 domestic marketing events were also organised in 2021-22 in different parts of the country for the weavers to market and sell their products,” the Ministry said.

Courtesy : The Hindu

By The Hindu Bureau

In an apparent response to Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who said in an article in The Hindu on Tuesday that the Centre failed to build a global audience for the country’s handlooms, the Union Textile Ministry stated that it has undertaken various measures for promoting the handloom sector.
Without mentioning Ms. Gandhi’s arguments, the Centre said it has implemented several schemes, such as the National Handloom Development Programme and Raw Material Supply Scheme, to provide end-to-end support for promotion of handloom sector and welfare of handloom workers.
Ms. Gandhi had said in the article that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) continues to be a burden on handloom workers, with tax having been introduced on the final product as well as on raw materials (yarns, dyes, and chemicals). “Our workers’ consistent demands to exempt handlooms from GST have fallen on unsympathetic ears, even as surging costs, particularly of electricity and cotton fibre, squeeze them out,” she had argued.
The Ministry said under the National Handloom Development Programme, financial assistance is provided to eligible handloom organisations/workers for upgraded looms and accessories, solar lighting units, construction of worksheds, product and design development, technical and common infrastructure, marketing of handloom products in domestic/overseas markets, etc.
“Under Weavers’ MUDRA Loan/Concessional Credit Scheme, margin money assistance for individual weaver and handloom organisations; interest subvention and credit guarantee fees on loans for a period of three years are provided,” the Ministry said adding that life and accidental insurance cover, scholarships for higher education to the workers’ children are also given by the Centre.
“Handloom producers were facilitated by organising virtual fairs for showcasing handloom products for business-to-business buyers/exports for handloom Workers. Ten virtual fairs were organised in 2020-21 and 10 virtual fairs in 2021-22. Besides, 211 domestic marketing events were also organised in 2021-22 in different parts of the country for the weavers to market and sell their products,” the Ministry said.

Courtesy : The Hindu