Dilip Kumar Borah, Secretary, Finance, Handloom, Textiles & Sericulture speaks to Sudheer Goutham & T P Venu on the Government’s initiatives to promote the handloom sector in Assam
Tell us about the handloom sector in Assam
It would not be an exaggeration if we say that weaving is in the blood of the majority of people of Assam. Even my mother used to weave in her free time. The handloom sector is the second largest employment generator after agriculture in the state and the people of Assam and the Government are proud of the heritage. The handloom and textile sector reflects the cultural heritage of the state.
It is still an unorganised sector but with huge potential to catapult the state to prosperity whilst keeping alive the rich traditions without losing the essence and age-old practices.
Middlemen usually garner the major share of the profit in the handloom sector. What are the Government’s plans to combat this practise?
With the launch of ‘Swanirbhar Naari’ portal an initiative of the Handloom & Textiles Department, the Government is procuring handlooms directly from the indigenous weavers to cut out middlemen to empower the indigenous weavers of the state and to provide financial support to the weavers’ families, thereby weaving a tapestry of empowerment.
The scheme is implemented with the help of Assam Apex Weavers and Artisans Cooperative Federation (ARTFED) and Assam Government Marketing Cooperation (AGMC) under the administrative control of Director, Handloom Textiles, Assam.
How is the response to the Swanirbhar Naari scheme?
It has been phenomenal. In the very first week of the launch of the scheme Rs 1 crore worth products were purchased by the 100 procurement centres. ARTFED and AGMC sell the procured products charging a profit of 10% on the procured cost plus applicable GST in and outside the state including existing and e-marketing platforms.
In all 4,80,080 weavers registered. The procurement centres started on January 13, 2023 and has helped the weavers a great deal as middlemen have been eliminated.
A maximum of 100 numbers of benchmarked products will be procured directly from each eligible registered weaver. Payment will be made online to the weavers within four days of procurement of their products. It is a one hundred per cent transparent system as weavers are registered after a physical verification by the department officials. Only those who possess a loom have been registered.
Altogether 31 hand woven items are covered in the scheme belonging to various communities residing in the state. The portal will bridge the gap in between the weavers and the buyers.
Tell us about the Assamese gamosa and government’s initiatives to popularise it.
The Assamese gamosa is a symbol of the culture and identity of Assam. It has multiple uses. It is used at religious places to cover sacred items, farmers wrap it around the waist, a Bihu dancer uses it and people hang it around their neck and guests are welcomed with the gamosa. With the Prime Minister Narendra Modi giving importance to handlooms, especially the gamosa has helped a great deal in popularising it across the country. It has received the Geographical Indication (GI) tag. The government is leaving no stone unturned to popularise the production and marketing of gamosa, eri and moga silk.
What is the progress on the World Bank project?
Under the Assam Agribusiness & Rural Transformation Project (APART), directorate of handloom & textile is the Operational Project Implementation Unit (OPIU) a World Bank funded Government of Assam Project, under ARIAS Society. It encompasses nine districts namely; Kamrup, Sonitpur, Biswanath, Lakhimpur, Jorhat, Majuli, Sivasagar, Charaideo and Dhemaji.
The aim is for technology upgradation support to weavers, design input and marketing support, business incubation centres and branding. There are 7,000 beneficiaries across the state and the total sanction for seven year project is Rs 22.80 crore for a period of seven years.
Workshops on application of natural (vegetable) dyes on Eri Silk in five districts is yielding results as weavers have started practising at home and the value of the end product has increased in the market. Similarly, workshops on design development in which 160 participated are showing positive results. Weavers who were using traditional method of design have begun using Jacguard for their design development activities.
Under the North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd, weavers were taken to exhibitions and fairs to Delhi, West Bengal and other places to improve marketing, linkages and branding.
Tell us about the outcome of schemes and how it benefitted weavers.
Under the State Government’s scheme-Income Generation, Intervention to Handloom Weavers each weaver was given a loom. In 2019-20, under Weaver Extension Service Unit 5,133 weavers were given a loom worth Rs 22,500 and in 20-21 period, 3,863 each weaver was provided a loom worth Rs 24,750. This apart, every weaver was given yarn worth Rs 2,500. Under cluster project, with a group of 10 numbers i.e., self help groups were benefitted. Barring the sixth schedule areas, other districts were included in the scheme.
The Samarth scheme was put on hold for a while. What is the status at present?
The implementation was delayed due to Covid-19 pandemic and Rs 7,48,97,000 was received in March 2020. Presently, training programmes have resumed in Kamrup, Nagaon, Morigaon, Gulaghat, Hojai, Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Shivsagar, Tinsukia, Lakimpur, Dhimaji, Biswanath, Sonitpur, Darrang, Barpeta, Kokrajhar, Baska and Golpara.
Under the Government of India (GoI) Ministry of Textiles, the Directorate of Handloom & Textiles, Assam is the implementing partner. A total of 117 training centres were approved on physical verification by the Ministry and allotted a target of 17,820 weavers to be trained. It is a transparent scheme and is based on Aadhaar based biometric attendance system.
The training programme is for 300 hours and is recorded. The data is stored for one year. Only those with 80% attendance are eligible for assessment. A skill certificate is issued by the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. 2.150 trainees have completed the course and 490 are undergoing training. The minimum age limits is 14 years.