National Handloom Day: Commemorating National Handloom Day on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address hailed the growth of khadi and village industries in India. PM Modi noted that not just the production of khadi has grown over 3x in the last nine years of his government but the turnover of khadi and village Industries has also crossed Rs 1.3 lakh crore now from Rs 25,000 — Rs 30,000 crores.
“Khadi and village industries were only around Rs 25-30 thousand crores nine years ago. but today it has reached more than one lakh thirty thousand crore rupees,” he informed. PM Modi also highlighted that the sale of khadi clothes increased by five times and its demand in foreign nations is also increasing.
The Prime Minister also signified the role of schemes for the textile industry becoming the means of social justice, due to the vast diversity of people from marginalized communities associated with it. He mentioned the scholarship provided by the government of up to Rs 2 lakh in skill training for the children of weavers. He also noted that more than 600 handloom clusters have been developed in the last nine years, from where thousands of weavers have been trained.
PM Modi further highlighted other initiatives such as non-collateral loans under the Mudra scheme for the artisans, raw materials at a concessional price, exhibitions to promote sales, schemes like One District One Product (ODOP), and setting up of Ekta Mall in state capitals to promote handloom products of the state that further helped in contributing to the growth of the sector.
Stating the Government e-marketplace data, the PM said that about 1.75 lakh organisations related to textiles and handlooms are linked to the platform. Citing NITI Aayog’s data, he added that 13.5 crore people have come out of poverty during the last five years, mainly due to the growing turnover of the Khadi and Village industries.
Importantly, Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) had reported a whopping 332 per cent growth in sales in the last nine years, according to the data from KVIC. The turnover increased from Rs 31,354 crores in 2013-14 to Rs 1,34,630 in 2022-23, registering a three-fold increase over these years.
The increase in demand has also led to a similar impact on the products of Khadi, whose production increased from Rs 26,109 crores in FY2014 to Rs 95,957 crores in FY2023, registering an increase of 268 per cent, according to a KVIC statement in June this year.