Years of neglect leave Karnataka's weaving industry on its last legs

The ‘Textile and Garment Policy 2019-24’ has been envisioned to provide a stimulus to the textile industry and generate five lakh new employment in five years in the state.

However, with just one year to go before a new textile policy is drafted on the papers, a check on ground reality not only contradicts the vision of the Department of Handlooms and Textiles in attracting large investment but highlights that there is large scale migration of skilled laborers from traditional handloom sector.

According to the official website of the department, there are more than eight lakh workers employed directly or indirectly in the textile sector in the state. Karnataka produces nearly 20 per cent of the nation’s readymade garments, the lion’s share of which is taken by silk (65 per cent), wool (12 per cent) and cotton (3.5 per cent) products. There are more than 1.20 lakh powerlooms and 42,000 handlooms functioning in the state.

Experts and weavers say that traditional sarees such as Bhagyanagar cotton saree, Molakalmuru and Ilkal silk sarees, Gajendragad and Belagavi sarees, and others are facing existential crisis. Some of them are being sold under different brands due to lack of marketing and publicity. This apart, the weavers also face hardship in getting loans from the banks under various schemes of both union and state governments, increase in the cost of raw materials, non-availability of skilled labourers, and poor infrastructure and connectivity.

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Not just handloom weavers, even the powerloom weavers are not getting the right price for their produce. Koppal’s Bhagyanagar sarees, which are known for their simple yet elegant coloured cotton sarees, are forced to sell their products at a limited profit margin as they do not have a bigger market. “Each of our 12 powerlooms produces three sarees per day. Unlike the famed Mysuru silk, which is promoted extensively by the State government, our products do not get a proper market, forcing us to sell the produce at a minimum profit margin,” says Rajesh Kabber of Krishna Handlooms.

Rajesh also expressed his displeasure that several boutiques and showrooms in metro cities are selling powerloom sarees as handloom products and making windfall of profit by cheating customers.

The government is not just indifferent to private manufacturers but also to government agencies. As an official says, successive governments have ruined units run by Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation. One such golden goose was the unit at Bhagyanagar. The unit, which till 2015 had nearly 200 weavers benefiting from weaving nearly 110 products, including bedsheets, towels, and others. These were sold in 28 Priyadarshini stores across the state. However, now the unit has only 10 weavers. At least 25 of the 40 handlooms at the unit are defunct and gathering dust.

Abdulsab Rasool Hubli, one of the weavers at the unit, says the government is ‘not shutting the unit’, but forcing the weavers to leave on their own. “The unit has been relegated to preparing white cloth for school uniforms as we are not getting raw materials for other products. We are getting Rs 35 per metre of cloth weaved and per day one can weave five-six metre of cloth. How can one survive with such low income?” he asks.

Officials do concede that the poor condition of the unit is due to successive governments’ negligent attitude towards the handlooms. “The past governments neglected the traditional art form and started cutting down on various products. Bhagyanagar unit is in its final stage unless the government intervenes,” said a senior officer, who did not wish to be named.

A majority of weavers that DH interacted with said they are not aware of the various schemes that are announced by governments. The only benefit that almost all the accredited weavers have received in the last four years was the Rs 5,000 one-time relief that the Union government provided during the Covid-19 pandemic.

No fresh blood

Another reason why the experts fear that traditional saree weaving art is facing slow death in the state is that not many youngsters are taking up this profession. “If I continued to be a weaver I would not have got married,” said Ranganati Singh Rajput who left handloom work to become a roadside food vendor in Bhagyanagar.

Shrikant Guled, a traditional Ilkal saree weaver, says the government needs to train youngsters in the traditional form by providing better incentives.

Official response

KHDC Managing Director Gurudath Hegde said the corporation’s finances are in bad shape and in spite of this the government is making all-out efforts to provide maximum support to the weavers.

He claimed that only 14 of the 28 Priyadarshini units are functioning in five districts of the state as many of the employees retired and replacements were not made. The corporation is planning to make use of technology to help weavers sell their products online for the right price.