Kullu: Union Minister of Commerce and Industry and Textiles Piyush Goyal has announced to set up a Weaver Services and Design Resource Center in Kullu.
The centre is aimed to encourage attractive handicraft products of the state besides providing a better platform for the export of these products in the international market.
Piyush Goyal said that Himachal Pradesh had immense potential for handicrafts and skill up-gradation of artisans, modern equipments and training would be imparted to prepare qualitative new designs in the Weavers Service Center. He said that more attention was needed to modernize the design, quality, packaging and marketing so that the weavers get a better price for their products in the international market.
The union minister suggested organizing district-wise exhibitions of these products in big cities, people associated with the textile industry and five-star hotels so that their branding could be done at the national and international level. He asked the weavers to get their trademark for which the central government had reduced the registration fee by 80 percent.
As per the government record, at present 13,572 weavers are registered in the state whose livelihood was related to the skill of weaving and embroidery. The handkerchief of Chamba along with the Kullu shawl and cap and the shawl of Kinnaur had been given G.I. Tags. In order to facilitate an online sales platform for weavers, MoU had been signed with Flipkart and the department was also doing an online sale of products.
