Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) is going to provide financial assistance of Rs 12, 00 every month to the Khadi artisans for the education of their children.This was announced by Dr Hina Shafi Bhat, member north zone KVIC on Wednesday while chairing a meet with 400 Khadi artisans in Srinagar. “Artisans working in different areas of the Kashmir must be paid more as they are facing lot of problems as per the present wages system,” Dr Hina said.During the meeting Vinay Kumar, State Director, KVIC, Anil Kumar Sharma, Assistant Director and Secretaries of various Khadi Institutions were also present.Artisans raised problems and said that since last two years they were not paid any wages due to which they are facing many problems. “We cannot sustain for long on the low wages in the industry and hence, youngsters are not willing to learn the art.
The profit has gone down over the years. Very few young people are coming forward to learn it,” they said.On this, Dr Hina on spot issued instructions to the concerned for solving the problems of Artisans at the earliest. “The artisan is paid very less. The final product, sold in glamorous showrooms, is expensive but the artisan at the base of the chain earns very little,” she said.She assured that for the larger interest of weavers and spinners and to benefit the workers, weavers and spinners – associated with Khadi she would take the matter with the highest level so that the problems of the Artisans would be solved soon.She said that we are providing lots of facilities to artisans, including setting up workshops for them at their native villages, besides coming up with other schemes such as providing them with Rs 1,200 per month for their children education and Rs 25 lakh loan facility. “We are also making sure that there are no middlemen involved in the payment procedure of artisans," she said.
The duo said this support is encouraging youngsters to take up the art as a profession. "The kids come up with new designs and technology, which also helps propel khadi in the global market," She saidIt is worth to mention here that the khadi industry generated employment for about 2,025 artisans in FY2016-17, while the village industry generated 4.08 lakh jobs,” adding, “We are very keen on generating employment, and hence we are distributing charkhas and looms, and also replacing old charkhas.”Last year, khadi and village industries’ turnover was Rs 52,000 crore, of which khadi contributed Rs 2,007 crore. This year, khadi revenues are expected to grow by 35% to touch Rs 2,700 crore.Over the last one month, KVIC has announced association with textile giants Raymond and Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail that will see the launch of khadi products under their respective brand names.