Panipat handloom sector jeopardised

Besides agriculture, the handloom industry in India is another leading generator of employment opportunities. The handloom sector provides employment to about 65 lakh workers, out of which about 62.40% are women and 35% from the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. “However, it has been observed that the sector is confronted with various issues such as obsolete technology, low productivity, lack of marketing strategies and neck-to-neck competition from power looms,” says Harish Chauhan, manager of JS Carpets, a small-sized carpet manufacturer in Haryana.

Hurdles faced

The handloom industry in Panipat has been witnessing similar issues due to which the manufacturers aresuffering from decline in production. According to the manufacturers, the government has not been able to provide them the required technical knowledge to undertake quality control measures and manufacture value-added products. As a result, the Indian handloom sector is unable to attain the high standards in the global markets.

“About 2,000 handloom units belonging to the SME sector provide employment to 40,000 weavers in Panipat who manufacture handloom items such as carpets, durries and table covers, among others,” says Vikram Arora, manager of Indian handloom, a mid-sized handloom manufacturing company in Haryana. However, the government has failed to undertake the initiative to form special clusters for the handloom units in Panipat. As a result, the handloom industry has not been able to witness significant growth.

Decline in handloom exports

The handloom items manufactured in Panipat are exported to various parts of the world such as the US, Germany and Australia, among others. According to the industries department’s records, it was found that there was a surge from Rs 680 crores during 1999-2000 to Rs 3,000 crore during 2007-08 in Panipat handloom exports. However, the economic slump resulted in the decline of handloom exports in Panipat to Rs 2,840 crore in 2008-09. This was a setback for the handloom industry, especially for the SME players.

According to the weavers in Panipat, the government has not been able to provide them adequate support, which has hampered their growth. However, the handloom industry in Panipat is still reflecting a positive attitude and hopes to recover from their losses with government support.

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