Indian Officials Promote Handloom Sector for National Handloom Day

Indian leaders marked National Handloom Day on August 7 by announcing new infrastructure projects and calling for increased public support for traditional textiles. In Lucknow, Yogi Adityanath reported that 30 lakh people in Uttar Pradesh depend on the handloom and powerloom sectors for their livelihoods. He announced that the state provided 109 crore rupees in electricity benefits to over 40,000 artisans last year and is now developing a 1,000-acre PM MITRA Park in Lucknow, a trade facilitation center in Varanasi, and five textile parks named after Sant Kabir.

Adityanath noted that women comprise 70% of the handloom workforce and emphasized the need to align traditional skills with global market demands through improved technology and packaging. He specifically cited the success of the Bhadohi carpet industry, whose products were selected for the new parliament building.

In New Delhi, Himachal Pradesh Governor Kavinder Gupta visited the Himachal Emporium to purchase local handicrafts. Gupta urged Indian citizens to buy handloom products to support artisan families and promote the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative. Meanwhile, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development organized a five-day exhibition in Mandi, where Divisional Commissioner Raj Krishan Paruthi pledged to create new vending spaces for artisans along national highways near Sundernagar and Pandoh to improve market access.