Guwahati: The Assam government has officially begun purchasing hand-woven traditional goods through its Directorate of Handloom and Textile in order to empower the weaving community.
This will allow the government agency to purchase hand-woven goods directly from the manufacturer without using a middleman.
According to a release from the Chief Minister’s Office, around 4.8 lakh female weavers from all over the State have registered their names on the relevant portal and will be selling their products through 100 procurement centres that are being established.
Himanta Biswa Sarma, the chief minister of Assam said during the inaugural event in Guwahati that the initiative to buy hand-woven goods directly from the weavers will assist to safeguard the State’s traditional handloom sector from the assault of the powerloom industry.
Invoking Gandhi’s well-known remark that “Assamese women weave dreams on their looms,” Chief Minister Sarma claimed that the handloom industry, which he described as a form of expression for Assamese cultural identity, has been suffering significantly as a result of the markets being overrun with less expensive goods made on power looms.
The Chief Minister claimed that there were sizable domestic and international markets for Assamese handloom items and predicted that this procurement drive would provide the handloom sector of the State an advantage over the powerloom sector.
He continued by saying that the “Swanirbhar Naari” initiative would give the weavers a sense of financial certainty because it ensures a secured return on their time and resource inputs.
In addition, Chief Minister Sarma made reference to the Handloom (Reservation of Articles for Production) Act of 1985, which prohibits the manufacture and sale of 11 items using a power loom and reserves their production to the handloom industry only. Chief Minister Sarma said the government would ensure that the handloom laws of the land are upheld. Governmental organisations would start a campaign to prevent products intended for the handloom industry from being made by the power loom sector.
The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, was thanked by the Chief Minister for popularising the Assamese hand-woven Gamusa by utilising it in a number of official ceremonies both domestically and overseas. The recent issuance of the Geographical Indication designation would also give the gamusa a huge boost in terms of popularisation.