The minister for Handlooms and Textiles Mr. R. Gandhi made his presence felt at the textile fair at Erode. He spoke about how from 2nd of January onwards, free dhotis and sarees would be distributed to the public for the Pongal festival. He threw light on the exact date( 19th July) on which the tenders for manufacturing dhotis and sarees were issued.
There are certain norms stipulated by the TN govt and the selected firms must qualify these norms compulsorily. A scrutiny has been going on now regarding this. From 5th of August 2023, the manufacturing of dhotis and sarees would commence. It must be taken into account that action would be taken if the handloom products are weaved in the power looms. The quality of the sarees and dhotis would be good.
Point to be noted is that the weavers cooperative societies that were reeling under Rs 141 cr debts have now been made debt free. To provide bed sheets made from only cotton yarn, inspections were carried out and action taken. It must not be forgotten that many complaints were received regarding the cotton bedsheets being mixed with polyester material.
Mr. R. Gandhi later revealed that the salaries of the weavers have been increased by 10% from time to time to reach Rs 800 per day. It is worthy to note that the youngsters were given training in weaving to attract them into this weaving profession. The superb piece of information is that the youngsters would be made entrepreneurs by arranging loans as well as getting job orders etc.