Indian Weavers to Hold 'Banashankari Yatra' Against The Mechanization of Handlooms

Handloom weavers in India, under the banner of the All-India Federation of Handloom Organizations, will hold ‘Banashankari yatra’ against the mechanization of handlooms in the country.

Speaking at a press conference, P Prasanna, convenor of Desi, a non-governmental organization into production and sales of products made by khadi and village industries, said the yatra will begin on January 15, 2014 from Gajendraghad in Gadag district and will conclude on January 27 at Badami in Bagalkot district, both in southern Indian state of Karnataka.

The purpose of the 200-km long yatra was to go to the villages with high concentration of weavers and organize them.

Subsequently, weavers would launch an indefinite hunger strike at Heggodu village in Sagar taluk of Shimoga district from January 30, Mr. Prasanna informed.

He said the handloom sector in the country has been neglected by successive governments, which have lured handloom weavers to use powerlooms.

He said a survey undertaken in Andhra Pradesh and other regions found that nearly 70 percent of the products sold as handloom products were actually powerloom products. He alleged that powerloom operators have been duping customers by falsely branding their products as handloom-made.

Handlooms (Reservation of Articles for Production) Act, 1985, reserves certain products for the handloom sector, but the Central Government was not taking measures for strict enforcement of the law, enabling powerloom operators to manufacture the reserved products, Mr. Prasanna said.

India has over 4 million handloom units, the highest in the world, which together employ more than 2.25 million people, about 78 percent of whom are women.