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Weavers cry foul as charm for handicraft
items falls in Himachal Pradesh
by Rajiv Kimta

       Kullu: As once popular handicrafts workers in Kullu confront a rapidly falling number of admirers due to a growing fascination for using hand-woven household wares, the weavers fear a painful death of their ancestral art. The intricately woven and brightly coloured wares crafted from strips of cane today earn the weavers an income, which is barely enough to make two ends meet. Frustrated with ongoing trends, the weavers are compelled to prevent their children to takeover the legacy. "We have been in this trade for the twenty years last and yet we are not secure. It just does not earn us enough to keep the fire wood for daily kitchen burning and the children properly fed. We work so hard but the meagre returns leave us struggling," says Mangla Devi, a lady weaver. The weavers want the government to come forward for help. "The raw material we require for weaving these wares is to be fetched from the jungles. We have to trek many miles into the rough jungles to fetch wood, break it according to shapes that we need and dry it. Thereafter, we have to then weave and sell them. But despite all this we long for pittance. Sustenance has become a big challenge in the wake of very low margins" says Nirth Ram. In Himachal Pradesh, farmers use traditional woven baskets - "Kirta"--, which is useful to carry loads with ease. "The traditional Kirta has multiple uses. One can use it to carry apples, food grains, mud, cow dung and many other useful things. But all this is turning difficult to acquire one as the weavers' community is shrinking in terms of participation and the item is also more expensive now," said Guru Dayal Singh, a farmer. While market analysts peg the recent annual trade of exports in handicrafts from India to other countries at almost rupees 4,000 crore, the artisans here are anxious about making their ends meet.
-Nov 13,  2006

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