The handloom industry in India
has been intimately related to the culture and history of this country. It has
gradually evolved over hundreds and thousands of years, shaping up many trends
and practices of India’s day to day life. However, in the recent times, the
handloom industry in this country has been facing serious challenges from a
number of sectors which is making it extremely difficult for the people
involved in this business to reap the rewards that they are supposed to get.
New technology, competition from a global market, new trends of marketing and
other factors have made things difficult for the traditional handloom weavers
of India who have been practicing their ancient art very much in the same way
that their ancestors used to do once.
Apart from the usual challenges
to the traditional practices of handloom weaving, one of the critical issues
that have surfaced in the recent times is the eagerness from a number of
institutions to enhance the prospects of handloom weavers by using technology driven
looms which can apparently increase their overall productivity and earnings. The
real situation is that it is an attempt on the part of the power loom operators
to take over the traditional handloom industry and convert the handloom production methods into new power loom-based production techniques. However,
the downside to this is that it is going to extend the benefits that are
currently now available to handloom weavers according to the Government of
India schemes to the power loom operators. Hence it will lead to the weakening
of one sector and the strengthening of the other. While it is a common
knowledge that only a handful of handloom schemes are now being able to meet
the needs of the weavers, the situation is going to turn even graver if this so-called
conversion in power looms take place.
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| Indian traditional sarees by handloom weavers |
The new scheme that aims to
combine handloom production techniques with power loom production techniques is
flawed from the very onset. The proposed method of work would include some of
the processes being done by hand and the rest of them motorized. Nevertheless,
the end products would still be categorized as handloom fabrics and would be
eligible to receive the conventional incentives attributed to the handloom
industry. However, if this actually takes place then the richness for which
Indian handlooms are known will simply fall apart as it would never be possible
to create handlooms that are even half as good with power loom techniques. The
most serious aspect to thing whole thing is that this new way of working was
never really discussed during the 12th Five Year Plan held by the
Government of India to improve handicrafts and handlooms. It only came to light
as some of the handlooms welfare officials came to visit the handloom weavers
and were quite alarmed to find that the weavers themselves have started to
protest seriously to improve the situation for their own business interests.
Many places in India where power looms were
supposed to be implemented do not have adequate electricity to run the
machines. In such cases, the production will never be able to reach the optimum
targets by which the workers can claim remunerations. In fact, the incentive
schemes for handloom weavers that is to be extended to the power loom operators
is an illusion. This call for motorized production was actually a move to win
over power loom lobbyists so that certain influential politicians can have
their support during elections. However, the disparity between certain
political heads in relation to the war between traditional handloom techniques
versus power loom techniques is making it even more difficult for the
Government of India to put an end to this struggle.
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