Importance of Handloom Industry in India

Literature Review
Analytical Study of Handloom in India:

In order to sustain an authentic identity, India has got to retain what is authentically exclusive
to it. Indian handloom is something that gives the nation something to take pride in as it holds
age old traditions, culture and heritage ever since the time of the Indus Valley civilization.
However, as far as substantial value is concerned, the handloom industry is the second largest
sector to employ right next to the agriculture sector. The entire handloom production
contributes to 14% of the total textile production. It is also responsible of bringing foreign
exchange to the Indian economy as a large number of 125 countries are now buying Indian
handloom textile. According to Dr. Usha N. Patil, Indian handloom is one of the sectors
responsible for the growth in Indian economy. Apart from bring a major source of
employment, especially for women, it holds the heritage of authentic Indian fabric and design
techniques, making up a share of 14% production that is pre industrial and 13% production
that is sent for export and 4% of the gross domestic product (2012). Thus, this sector not only
helps thousands of artisan families to make ends meet, but it also protects the generational
legacy, identifies the richness within the diversity as different handloom clusters of different
states are unique and idiosyncratic in their own ways.

Current Scenario of Handloom Industry in India:

The handloom industry has been carried forward by the weaver community who have been
sustaining this heritage quintessential to India since time immemorial. Besides agriculture,
the handloom industry of India remains to be extremely labour intensive which not only
brings bread and butter for the artisans families but also provides the women with
employment. This sector has remained ever dynamic having its own ups and downs. From
being disbarred by the British rulers to coining a government policy exclusive to the
handloom industry, adequate evolution has been witnessed by this sector to keep it unaffected
by the growing power looms and textile mills. The establishment of All India Handloom
Board in 1945 and the controlling law on the mill production of certain cotton cloth to protect
the authenticity of Indian handloom in 1950 evidently promise the positive impact that this
sector brings upon the Indian economy. However, for the past several years, the handloom
industry has been hung out to dry and not been given justified attention. The reasons for this
could be summed up as- a. the upsurge in the establishment of power looms and textile mills
due to the textile policy created in 1985 that took back all restrictions and indulged in the
huge expansion of power looms. Polyester yarns were also procured from other countries for
the power mills. b. due to the lack of any policy ensuring that quality yarn is supplied to the
weavers, the weavers eventually end up procuring yarns low in quality and quantity despite
paying 30 percent extra than the composite mills. c. considering the number of handlooms
existing in the country right now, there is a huge difference between the target given to the
artisans annually and the capacity that they have of producing. While the weavers can
produce 6000 million meters in every loom, they are limited to producing only 4500 million
metres. d. there is a dire need of providing working capital to the weavers families at a very
low interest which should be a lookout for the Indian government.

Handloom Industry of India:

According to Sudarsan Behera & * Dr. Asimananda Khandual, the sustainability factor of
any industry of a particular country is impacted by the hourly remuneration doled out to the
labours- the hourly labour charge being high will be indicative of the growth and expansion
of the public of that particular country whereas if the labour charge is low, it indicates that
there is still scope of development in the industry. Thus, considering the labour cost of Indian
handloom sector, it can be assumed that Indian handloom sector is an industry that is
booming and developing (2017). Apart from the contribution in the economic domain, the
global demand for handloom fabric is on the rise and the country is currently serving as much
as 95% of the global market for handloom fabric. This rise has also been due to the recent
application of GI in Ikat and other cloths.

SWOT analysis of the Handloom Sector in India:

The handloom sector will always have a distinct identity of its own because of its flawless
amalgamation of the tradition and the contemporary; because of the large scope that is there
in developing the range of the products; the acute and elegant design patterns created out of
the soul of the artisans and lastly because of the exotic value addition of the product due to it
being authentically handmade. (Kartick K. Samanta, S. Basak, 2014). Thus some of the
strengths of this industry are:

The labour skill that has been passed on to generations from generations;
Low labour cost;
The environment friendliness of the production process;
The vast production of cotton in the county;
Design patents and technologies not imitable by the power and textile looms;
Diverse range of products throughout the different clusters of the country;

However, the handloom sector has its own downsides. The challenges ushered in by several
laws and policies constitute of the following weaknesses in this sector:

Lack of marketing and managerial;

Slow incorporation of innovation in product techniques as well as the designs applied;
Lack in quantity and quality of the raw material provided to the artisans;
Lack of management in accounts and finance, in inventory costs and other overheads;
Headstrong weavers refusing to diversify products;
Lack of government empathy;

The market for handloom fabrics is still lucrative and ever growing. Thus the opportunities
are:
 Huge scope for export market in international countries;
Raising awareness in government bodies regarding handloom;
Various welfare programs ;
Formulation and introduction of new textile laws and policies;
Cluster development programs;
Introduction of banks to make procurement of raw materials easier;
Enforcement of minimum wages, work ethics and other labor related regulations;

The threats are:

Huge threat from the power looms who have been imitating the handloom products
and selling them at a much lower price;
Worker migration due to less wages and lack of sustainable livelihood;
Exploitation from the mediators involved in the supply chain process;
Wages becoming less day by day;
Globalization leading to cheap raw material imports;
Lack of awareness about LPG (liberalisation, privatisation, globalisation)
Decrease in consumption of per capita cloth;

Sustainability in Traditional Handlooms:

On a broader perspective, gaining sustainability in the traditional handloom sector will imply
aiming at more GDP, more economic contribution and prosperity, maintaining the integrity of
the heritage on a national level. However, the ideal scenario of sustainability would be to
provide for the artisans- skill retention of the weavers, giving them access to health care,
education. It is perennially important to preserve the cultural identity of the clusters and it is
mandatory to maintain democracy, social and gender equity, adaptation of renewable fabric
and dyes and social harmony. Low wages in handloom has been one undisputed factor in the
migration of weavers from handloom to power loom. But the recent government initiatives
and incentives have witnessed an upsurge in the handloom workers. Also, the natural process
of producing handloom enforces livelihood security instead of the hazardous synthetic
process of power looms which have been affecting the health of the general population as
well as the workers. This is also one of the reasons of workers still sticking to handloom
because of the long working hours affecting the health of the workers. Even though the
government incentives have been inviting growth in the handloom sector, it still requires
implementation of suitable and systematic frame work in order to become sustainable. (Balaji
N, Mani M, 2014)
References:
Behera, S, & Khandual, A 2017, 'Handloom Industry of India-A study on its market, trend
and sustainability', Colourage, 64, 4, pp. 29-40, Textile Technology Complete, EBSCOhost,
viewed 20 November 2017

KAUL, M, & VARMA, M 2016, 'Textiles in India: Fashioning the Contemporary', Marg: A
Magazine Of The Arts, 67, 4, pp. 42-51, Art & Architecture Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed
20 November 2017.

'Hopes for handloom' 2016, FRPT- Retail Snapshot, pp. 39-40, Business Source Complete,
EBSCOhost, viewed 20 November 2017.

'To Survive, India's Handloom finds constant rescue-measures', 2015, Textile Trends (0040-
5205), 24 October, Textile Technology Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 20 November 2017.

Balaji, N, & Mani, M 2014, 'SUSTAINABILITY IN TRADITIONAL

HANDLOOMS', Environmental Engineering & Management Journal (EEMJ), 13, 2, pp.
323-331, GreenFILE, EBSCOhost, viewed 20 November 2017.