Handloom is any loom other than Powerloom
- Part 2 -
With overviews on the handlooms of Assam and Manipur

Sougrakpam Bhubol *

Assamese Gamocha

The 4th Handloom Census elaborates that a total of 25,45,312 weaver households have been covered and a total number of 26,73,891 weavers have been enumerated. Interestingly, four States of India including two northeastern states account for 18 lakhs of all weaver households in the country. They are Assam (10.9 lakhs) households, West Bengal (3.4 lakhs), Manipur (2.1 lakhs) and Tamil Nadu (1.7 lakhs).

It further states that 22.5 lakhs (or 88.7%) of weaver households are located in rural areas, while 2.8 lakhs (or 11.3%) are in urban areas, with nearly 72% of handloom weavers being female. Across both urban and rural areas, the share of weavers aged 14 - 18 years is 2.4% only. Nearly one in four weavers have not received any formal education while a further 14% have not completed primary level.

Among the 26.73 lakh weavers enumerated, the average number of days of engagement in weaving activity was 208 days in the past year. Engagement opportunities are more for workers residing in urban areas (262 days) as against those in rural areas (201 days). In comparison, the average number of person-days of engagement was 183 days during the 3rd Handloom Census.

The top five states with the highest average number of person days of work are Maharashtra (310), Andhra Pradesh (302), Delhi (292), Chhattisgarh (290) and Puducherry (286).

Handloom in Assam (At a Glance)

Sl. No.	Particulars	Units in No.
1	No. of Handloom Households	12.69 lakh
2	No. of Handloom Weavers	12. 83 lakhs
3	No. of Handlooms	12.46 lakh
4	Part-time weavers	8.88 lakh
5	Full-time weavers	2.19 lakh
6	Female weavers	11.79 lakh
7	Male weavers	1.04 lakh
8	Average working day of weavers in a year	171 days
9	No. of weavers produces Gamocha	3.55 lakh
10	No. of weavers produces Mekhela-chadar	6.16 lakh
11	No. of weavers produce furnishings clothes	0.27 lakh
12	No. of weavers produces dress materials	0.22 lakh
13	No. of weavers produces other fabrics	2.47 lakh
14	No. of weavers uses Muga silk yarn	54,508
15	No. of weavers uses Eri silk yarn	43,685
16	No. of weavers use Mulberry silk yarn	5,401
17	No. of weavers having one or more nos. of looms	10.20 lakh
18	No. of weavers without looms	76,981
19	No. of weavers under co-operative fold	54,809
20	No. of weavers under SHG/JLG	1.65 lakh

(Source: Directorate of Handlooms & Textiles, Govt. of Assam)

Assam produces 4 varieties of silk - Eri, Muga, Mulberry, and Tassar, and altogether, 160 MT of Muga, and 3834 MT of Eri silk could be produced during 2020-21. Assam's Golden Silk Muga has got GI registration, under application no.384, and this Muga silk has great demand in Europe, the USA, Japan, South Africa, the Middle East, etc. The Directorate of Handloom & Textiles, Govt. of Assam, and its subordinate offices in every District and Subdivisions of the state have more than 2000 nos. of qualified technical and non-technical officers and staff.

The Directorate of Handlooms and Textiles, Govt. of Assam presently runs 102 nos. Handloom Training Centres for the upgradation of skills of unemployed youth in handloom techniques,
there are 4 nos. of Handloom Training Institutes to provide higher training on handloom and allied techniques,
98 nos. of Weavers Extension Service Units to produce diversified and value-added handloom fabrics with raw material and technical support of the department,
20 nos. of Handloom Production Centres for in-house production of decorative and high-value handloom clothes under the technical support of departmental staffs,
1 no. Handloom Research and Designing Centre to carry out Research and developmental works in handloom techniques and development of new textiles and decorative designs for the benefit of the handloom weavers of the state.

The State Handloom Policy, Assam, 2017, clearly highlights providing inte-grated and inclusive support in terms of subsidy on raw materials, revolving credit system, Working Capital subsidy, logistics, etc. to the handloom weavers, entrepre-neurs, and sericulture farmers of the state and investors in the sector.

Above this, there is the Textiles and Apparent Policy, 2018 which aims to create avenues in the textile sector by establishing new small and medium industries in the state to provide more employment by optimal utilization of raw materials, attracting investment in the sector.

The policy further provides interest subsidies on long-term loans, power- subsidies, employment generation subsidies, etc. It also provides subsidies and incentives to investors in the fields of Technical Textiles, Textile and apparel Parks, Training Institutes, Spinning, Weaving, Dyeing, etc.

In regards to major schemes, the Directorate of Handlooms and Textiles, Govt. of Assam, are presently implemented and may be placed as

(a). Skill up-gradation Programme: Running 102 nos. of Handloom Training Centres to provide yearlong training on handloom and other allied techniques to unemployed youth.

(b). Handloom Training Institute: Established 4 nos. of Handloom Training Institute to provide 1-year duration upgraded higher training on the handloom, textile designing, dyeing, entrepreneurship, etc. to the passed-out trainees from the Handloom Training Centres of the state.

(c). Yarn Bank: Running 33 nos. of Yarn Banks in the District and Sub-Divisional H.Q. of the state to provide quality raw material in the form of cotton hank yarn @ 30% subsidized rate at the Mill Gate Price.

(d). Income Generation Intervention to Handloom Weavers: Provides fly shuttle frame loom with working capital to the economically weaker weavers to take up handloom as a livelihood.

(e). Economic Upliftment Weavers: Provides financial grants to weaving SHG for skill up-gradation, new looms, and raw materials for their sustainable-quality production and liveli-hood.

(f). Handloom Model Village: Integrated and holistic development of a handloom village by providing end-to-end interventions to take up handloom weaving as a sustainable livelihood of the village weavers.

(g). Handloom Cluster Develop-ment Programme(CDP): Providing need-based interventions to a handloom cluster comprising of 3 to 4 nearby villages for taking up handloom weaving as their livelihood in a sustainable way commercially. Provides need-based skill up-gradation training on weaving, designing, etc. new looms and Jacquard. Work sheds to produce market-led high-value diversified handloom clothes.

(h). SWANIRBHAR NAARI: State Flagship Programme. The Government will procure handloom-made traditional items Gamocha, Aronai, Pazar, Dumer, etc. directly from the indigenous weavers at a quality bench-marking fixed price and will be sold through showrooms and outlets of ARTFED and AGMC Ltd. The eligible weavers can participate in the program through a registration portal.

In regard to Central Sector Schemes, Assam is implementing,

(a). National Handloom Development Programme: Block Level Cluster: Development Commissioner for Handlooms, Ministry of Textiles, GOI has sanctioned 59 nos.Block Level Clusters(BLC)now designated as the Cluster Development Programme(CDP) covering 52,722 nos. of weavers for a total project cost of Rs. 94.48 Cr.

(b). Weavers MUDRA: Loans are provided at a 6% subsidized rate of interest along with Rs. 10,000 as margin money to the handloom weavers without any collateral by the Commercial Banks.

(c). SAMARTH: MOU has been signed with the Ministry of Textiles, GOI to train up to 17, 778 nos. of weavers under the SAMARTH scheme. An amount of Rs. 748.07 lakh has been released during March'2020.

(d). Marketing Promotion Scheme: Handloom Expos are organized at various levels to provide a marketing platform to the handloom weavers, co-operative societies, SHG/JLG, entrepreneurs, etc. with the financial assistance of DC(H), MOT in and outside the state. For Budgetary Provision of Assam in the Govt. of India during 2022-23 is, for Revenue: Rs. 12357.11 Cr. And for Capital: Rs. 25.032 Cr. (Directorate of Handlooms and Textiles, Govt. of Assam).

To be continued...

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* Sougrakpam Bhubol wrote this article for e-pao.net
The writer (Sougrakpam Bhubol) was formerly Chairman of National Research Centre (NRC), Manipur,
Vice-President of the Manipur Apex Handloom Weavers and Handicrafts Artisans' C.S. Ltd.,
and presently, President of the Shintha Handlooms and Handicrafts C.S. Ltd.
Thongju-II, Imphal East, Manipur, and
Secretary of All Manipur Columnists' Union (AMCU).
He can be contacted to shinthangl(AT)gmail(DOT)com
This article was webcasted on 11 January 2024 .

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