18,000 Jobs At Risk
Young buyers and indie labels offer hope as ₹28.5 crore in wages and incentives go unpaid to India's handloom workers.
Story timeline10 updates
Flipkart reports nearly 70,000 Tamil Nadu sellers using its platform, including Kancheepuram silk weavers and artisan communities, with the company's ecosystem supporting over 1.3 lakh direct and indirect jobs in the state.
Flipkart is expanding operations in Tamil Nadu, with nearly 70,000 sellers using its platform, including Kancheepuram's silk weavers and artisan communities, supporting over 1.3 lakh direct and indirect jobs.
BJP leader Pasupleti Suresh Singh urges government to develop an exclusive handloom cluster in Srikakulam.
Flipkart is expanding operations in Tamil Nadu, connecting nearly 70,000 sellers including Kancheepuram silk weavers and artisan communities to nationwide customers through its platform.
BJP leader Pasupleti Suresh Singh urged the government to develop an exclusive handloom cluster in Srikakulam to support weavers.
Flipkart has expanded operations in Tamil Nadu, connecting nearly 70,000 sellers including Kancheepuram silk weavers and artisan communities to nationwide customers through its platform.
Kodagu artisans under PM Vishwakarma scheme received AI and e-commerce training to boost digital marketing and business visibility.
Karnataka’s PM Vishwakarma initiative trained Kodagu artisans in AI tools and e-commerce for business promotion.
BJP leader urged the government to develop an exclusive handloom cluster in Srikakulam to support weavers.
Story published. Young buyers and indie labels offer hope as ₹28.5 crore in wages and incentives go unpaid to India's handloom workers.
India’s handloom sector, employing around 18,000 workers in Kerala alone, is turning to younger consumers for survival as structural challenges deepen. The state’s workforce has declined from nearly 25,000–30,000 in the past, while cooperative societies have dropped from 600 to 450. Kannur, once Kerala’s handloom hub, now has only 36 active cooperatives.
Delays in government payments have left 3,000 workers in Kannur unpaid for over eight months, with ₹8.5 crore in wages pending for school uniform production. Arrears for production incentives, introduced in 2017, remain unpaid since 2019, totaling nearly ₹20 crore in the district. The dearness allowance for piece-rate workers has risen from ₹53 in 2019 to ₹150 today, but financial strain persists.
The Union government’s National Handloom Development Programme provides financial aid, raw materials, and design support to weavers. Meanwhile, social media and indie labels are repositioning handloom as fashionable and sustainable, attracting younger buyers. Industry representatives warn that without urgent reforms, the sector risks becoming a relic rather than a livelihood source.
