Crisis looms over Chendamangalam weavers

Handloom societies on the verge of closure as price of yarn shoots up and dyes are in short supply

A serious shortage of yarn and dyes and plummeting sales have pushed the popular Chendamangalam handloom weavers’ cooperative societies in Ernakulam district and around a thousand weavers into a serious financial crisis, which now threatens to end up in the closure of at least a few cooperatives.

The biggest problem now is the short supply of yarn and the inability of the cooperatives to sell old stock, said T.S. Baby, a member of the State Handloom Council. Ajithkumar Gothuruth, secretary of Karimpadam Cooperative Weavers’ Society in Chendamangalam, said a long-term crisis was brewing because new weavers were not entering the field because of the troubles in the sector.

Mr. Ajithkumar said the crisis has been worsened by the shifting of the regional office of National Handloom Development Council (NHDC) office from Kannur to Bengaluru. The NHDC supplies yarn and dyes to the cooperatives, which enjoy government support, but cannot buy these raw materials directly.