Chapter-IV HANDLOOMS AND POWRELOOMS OF KARNATAKA 4.1 Introduction Karnataka can be called as Mini India with its diverse culture, languages and faiths. The present state of Karnataka came in to being as a state of the Union of India on November 1 st 1956 as a result of the merger of five territories where Kannada was the language of the people. At present Karnataka consists of 30 districts and 176 talukas for administrative purpose. Karnataka is located in the southern part of India, between latitudes 11.31 and 18.45 North and the longitudes 74.12 and 78.40 East. Along its northern borders lie the states of Maharashtra and Goa; Andhra Pradesh is to the east; Tamil Nadu and Kerala to the south, while the Arabian sea form the western boundary. The brief profile of Karnataka state 1 is disclosed in the table 4.1 The table indicates that the Karnataka State possesses much potential for economic development. In the 1950s the Karnataka economy was predominantly agrarian in character. But it has changed significantly since 1980-81. It has a strong and vibrant industrial base built up over the years. Over the last decade, Karnataka s biggest success story is the growth of information technology led sector.
Table 4.1 Profile of Karnataka State Sl.No. Particulars Magnitude 1 Geographical Area 1,91,791 Sq.Km 2 Forest Area (Percentage) 19.3% of total area 3 Total Population 53 mn 4 Percentage of Urban Population 34% 5 Percentage of Rural Population 66% 6 Growth rate of Population 17.51% 7 Sex ratio 965 8 Percentage of Literacy 66.60% 9 Percentage cultivators to total working Population 56% 10 Percentage of net area sown 56.60% 11 Area of irrigated land 26.4 lakh hec. 12 No of enterprises 19.12 lakh 13 No of persons working in enterprises 52.53 lakh 14 Annual average growth of industrial production 6.63% 15 Per capita consumption of electricity 481 units 16 Installed capacity of electricity generation 4884.83 MW 17 Length of motorable roads 1,67,378 km 18 Rail net work 3172 Km 19 No of airports 4 20 No of sea ports 2 21 Primary sector contribution to SDP 26% 22 Secondary sector contribution to SDP 26% 23 Tertiary sector contribution to SDP 48% 24 25 State Domestic Production (SDP) (at 1993-94 prices) 2001-02 Rs.61,386.40 cr State per capita Income (at constant prices) 2001-02 Rs.11,516 26 Ranking in human development 7th place in India Source: Karnataka Human Development Report-2005. 74
4.2 Textile Industry of Karnataka The textile industry occupies an important position in the industrial landscape of Karnataka by way of its contribution to industrial production, employment generation and export earnings. It is next only to the agriculture sector in terms of employment generation. The textile sector contributes 0.50% of the GDP of the state, approximately Rs.1,00,000 crore in value. Karnataka accounts for 20% of the national garment production, valued at around 7,500 crore and 8% of the national exports 2. While there are more than 70 large and medium firms operating in the textile industry in Karnataka, there are more than 50,000 firms that qualify under the micro, small and medium category in this sector, and the largest segment under MSME (Micro Small and Medium Enterprise) sector in the state. As per the data made available by Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) there are total 3.86 lakh manufacturing units engaged in Textile and Garment Sector at the organised and unorganized level in Karnataka. Textile units are spread all over the state, with Belagavi, Bangalore, and Gulbarga districts having the highest concentration of textile production units. 75
Raw-material Base of Karnataka: Karnataka has a good raw material base like Cotton, Silk and Wool which helps the development of textile industry. Karnataka had grown about of 9 lakh bales of Cotton (2008-09) which is an approximate of 60% of country s production for which the 10 districts of the state contribute to Cotton production. Karnataka is the largest producer of the country s mulberry raw silk, 8241 tones (2007-08), which is an approximate of 60% of country s production. Production of silk is concentrated in the six districts of the state. Karnataka produced an approximate of 5.3 million Kgs of Wool (2004-05), which was about 11% of total production in the country. Six districts of the state contribute to wool production. These details explain the potentiality of textile sector in Karnataka State 3. 4.3 Handlooms of Karnataka Handloom weaving has been in Karnataka since very ancient times. Literary sources such as the works of Harihara, Bilhana and other poets of the medieval period speak of a variety of fabrics produced in Karnataka and also bear references to taxes that were payable on yarn, looms and dyes 4. Evidently, under the patronage of the ruling monarchs and the nobility, weaving was almost always in a flourishing state and enjoyed a position of importance next only to agriculture. 76
With the advent of the British rule, the situation changed drastically and the weaving industry suffered on account of the policies of the imperial government and the unfair, as also severe, competition from mill-made fabrics. Later on the swadeshi movement propped up the industry. Thereafter, especially after the dawn of independence, the government at the centre and also at the state have been providing various incentives consistently to the handloom industry to stabilize it and regain its former glory. The handloom industry of Karnataka is the largest cottage industry. In terms of magnitude of employment it is next only to agriculture. Therefore, it occupies an important place in the development of the state by catering to the needs of economically weaker sections of the society. According to the second handloom census conducted in 1995-96, the details of number of weavers and handlooms in Karnataka state are given in the table 4.2. Table-4.2 Handlooms in Karnataka State (1995-96 census) Details of Handlooms No. of Looms No. of Weavers No. of Families Silk 13641 23310 6573 Cotton 49384 120166 34011 Wool 13580 47458 13101 Total 76605 190934 53685 Source: Department of handlooms and Textiles Bangalore. 77
DIAGRAM 4.2 (a) These details provide us the information that in Karnataka State 53,685 families depend for their livelihood on handloom activity. The handlooms in the state provide employment to 1,90,934 weavers. The total number of handlooms in the state is 76,605. Third Handloom Census: The third census of Handlooms was conducted in April 2008 by NCAER (National Council of Applied Economic Research). The major highlights of the third census of the Handlooms with regard to Karnataka state are- The total number of handloom worker households is 37,680. Out of which 33,854 households are in rural area and remaining i.e 3826 households are in urban area. Hence the handloom activity is mainly a rural phenomenon. 78
Out of total handloom worker households (37,608), 842 households belong to Scheduled Cast, 1144 households belong to Scheduled tribes, 32,468 households belong to other backward caste and 3226 households are others. In Karnataka the total number of handlooms is 40,488. Out of which 34,606 are working looms and 5,882 are idle looms. Out of total handloom worker households (37,680), the number of households with looms is 19,896 and the households without looms are to the extent of 7,784. The average size of Handloom household is 4.83. Out of total handloom workers (1,82,065), the number of male (14 years and above) workers is 68079 and that of females (14 years and above) is 66,259 and the number of children (less than 14 years) is 47,727. The average earning of Handloom worker household is Rs.24,897/- per year. With regard to the nature of dwelling house, 6830 Handloom households are having kuchha house, 29,494 households are having semi pucca house and only 1356 households are having pucca house out of total 37,680 Handloom worker households. Out of total handloom worker households, 57.7% (21,744 households) are having membership in Co-operative Society. 79
With regard to source of loan taken by handloom households, 4.6% from money lender, 39.8% from master weaver, 2.2% from friends / Relatives, 27.3% from Co-operative Societies, 19.7% from Commercial banks, 4.1% from self Help Groups, 0.45 from traders and 1.9% from others. The numbers of indebted handloom households is 0.1 lakh (25.1%). Out of total handloom worker households (37680), 7223 households report that their children are interested in taking up handloom as profession: 12,827 households report unwillingness and 14,436 households report that they are uncertain and 3,194 households do not report anything. Out of total handloom households in Karnataka the number of handloom worker households reporting high threat from mill/powerloom sector is 12,458. The moderate threat is reported by 15,289 households and there are the handloom households saying that there is no threat and the number of such households is 5,701. At the same time some 4,242 handloom households do not have any idea regarding threat from mill or powerloom sector to the handloom sector. The handloom industry is scattered throughout the state in different districts. The details of district wise distribution of handlooms is given in the table 4.3. 80
Table-4.3 District wise Classification of Handlooms in the Karnataka State (1995-96 Census) Sl.No. District No. of Handlooms 1 Bangalore (U) 8352 2 Bangalore (R) 288 3 Belagavi 5099 4 Bijapur 3756 5 Bagalkot 20599 6 Bellary 2402 7 Bidar 1336 8 Chikkamagalur 218 9 Chitradurga 3425 10 Davangere 3426 11 Dharwad 891 12 Haveri 4016 13 Gadag 4012 14 D.Kannada 721 15 Udupi 721 16 Gulbarga 3525 17 Hassan 962 18 Kolar 1827 19 Kodagu 28 20 Mandya 238 21 Mysore 680 22 Chamarajnagar 684 23 Raichur 374 24 Koppal 1499 25 Shimoga 1026 26 Tumkur 6426 27 U.Kannada 74 Total 76605 Source: Department of handlooms and textiles, Bangalore. 81
The table 4.3 provides the information regarding the scale of developing handloom activity in different districts of Karnataka. The districts like-bagalkot, Bangalore (U), Tumkur, Belagavi, Haveri, Gadag, Bijapur, Davangere, Chitradurga, Gulbarga have extensively developed handloom activity. The districts which have developed handloom activity on moderate scale are Bellary, Kolar, Koppal, Bidar and Shimoga. The handloom activity is found on a very small scale in the remaining districts. 4.4 Khadi Handlooms It was the Swadeshi movement in 1905, which created interest in Khadi cloth weaving. Even today Karnataka is known for khadi handlooms. At present there are 73 cotton, 25 silk and 44 woolen and 02 polyvastar khadi societies functioning in the state. Now at present Khadi handloom industry is developed in North Karnataka and Hyderabad Karnataka. Karnataka Khadi is known for its quality which has high demand both at the national and international levels. The performance of khadi handloom industry in Karnataka is given in the table 4.4 82
Sl. No. Table-4.4 Khadi Handloom Industry in Karnataka Items Cotton Woollen Silk (2007-08) Total Khadi 1 Production (Rs in lakh) 1956.25 870.44 1028.15 3854.84 2 Sales (Rs in lakh) 2085.42 815.23 941.95 3842.60 3 Employment (lakh persons) 4 Earnings (Rs in lakh) 0.14 0.16 0.01 0.31 995.05 339.97 356.98 1692.00 Source: KVIC, Annual Report.2007-08 So khadi sector also contributes considerably towards the development of handloom industry in Karnataka. The value of total Khadi cloth production is worth Rs.3854.84 lakhs and provides employment to 31,000 persons and the earnings from khadi production are Rs 1692 lakhs. Both the khadi and village Industries Commission and Karnataka Khadi and Village Industries Boards look after the development of khadi handlooms. 4.5 Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation (KHDC) According to the 20 point programme of central government, to uplift the handloom weavers working outside the co-operative sector, KHDC was established on October 2 nd 1975. One of the important features of KHDC is, it has developed Intensive Handloom Development Project at different places in the state. At present there are 12 intensive Handloom Development scheme centers. 83
The purposes 5 of this scheme are- 1. To free the weavers from the clutches of master weavers. 2. To meet the yarn requirements of weavers 3. To improve the quality of weaving through training 4. To arrange for marketing of handloom products. The bird s eye view of the performance of KHDC from 2000-01 to 2009-10 is given in the table 4.5. It is very much clear from the table 4.5 that presently, the KHDC is taking responsibility to increase loomage under its supervision and free the weavers from clutches of master weavers. At present (2009-10) it has 49904 looms under its supervision which means about 50,000 handloom weavers are depending on KHDC. The cloth procured from the weavers is 96.98 lakh mtrs which values at Rs.345.98 lakhs; the conversion charges paid amounts to Rs.1075.29 lakh and the supply of yarn is worth Rs.2327.02 lakhs. The KHDC has achieved the sales turnover worth Rs.9872.35 lakh in the year 2009-10. 84
Table-4.5 Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation-ten years at a glance (2000-01 to 2009-10) Sl. No. Particulars 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 1 Loom Coverage (Cumulative coverage) 2 Cloth procurement from weavers (volume: lakh mtrs) 3 Cloth procurement value (Rs in lakhs) 4 Conversion charges to weavers (Rs in lakhs) 5 Yarn issues to weavers (Rs in lakhs) 6 Sales turnover (Rs in lakhs) 47549 47648 48118 44754 48359 48705 48936 49131 49568 49904 167.86 118.71 165.91 100.25 99.38 128.93 107.36 108.83 99.98 96.98 4119.28 3184.16 4035.11 2610.86 2914.8 3682.13 3166.77 3250.93 3180.36 3451.98 1154.68 948.29 1205.55 764.21 872.83 1107.52 915.82 944.39 968.22 1075.29 2798.34 2255.15 2753.98 2709.28 2111.22 2531.27 2182.4 2247.41 2194.54 2327.02 6017.77 9688.63 4989.75 8565.68 7643.44 6998.38 877.44 9481.09 8663.08 9872.35 Source: KHDC, 35 th Annual Report 2009-10 85
4.6 Powerlooms of Karnataka The decentralized cottage powerloom industry occupies a predominant place in the industrial map of Karnataka state. This is a very important industry from the socio-economic point of view. Its potential for generating employment and foreign exchange are considerably large. It is a complementary activity for generating employment. There are no authentic records to show when powerlooms were first introduced in Karnataka. It is difficult to get any records or accurate statistics of powerlooms. The recent census of powerlooms was in the year 1995-96. The details of number of weavers and powerlooms in the state according to the 1995-96 census is given in the table 4.6. Table-4.6 Powerlooms in Karnataka State (2008-09) Details of Powerlooms No. of Looms No. of Weavers No. of Families Silk, Polyester Blends 88,566 1,27,535 30,998 Source: Department of handlooms and Textiles, Bangalore. The table 4.6 gives us the information that in Karnataka 30,988 families are engaged in powerloom weaving. The powerlooms of the state provide employment to 1,27,535 weavers directly and the numbers of powerlooms is 88,566. 86
The powerloom industry in the state is decentralized and scattered throughout the state in different districts. The details of district wise distribution of powerlooms is given in the table 4.7 The Powerlooms have been extensively developed in the districts like- Bangalore (R), Bangalore (U), Belagavi, Bagalkot. There is moderate development of powerlooms in the districts like- Bijapur, Haveri and Gadag. In the remaining districts the powerloom activity is found on a very small scale. The powerloom industry of Karnataka is the 5 th largest in the country in terms of authorized loomage. Silk varieties predominate the product mix that the industry produces; followed by art silk and cotton varieties. Bangalore and doddaballapur are specialized in production of silk sarees, where as Belagavi has concentrated on pure polyester sarees and Bijapur district in cotton sarees. Nearly 95% of the loomage in the state is concentrated in three districts; viz, Bangalore, Belagavi and Bagalkot. The growth of powerloom industry in Karnataka is not significant as compared to other leading states in India. Another fact is that all the three districts in the state are mainly producing sarees. These three districts were originally handloom centers, but during mid sixties powerlooms were introduced and since then the industry has been gradually developing. It is more capital intensive. 87
Table-4.7 District-wise Powerlooms in Karnataka (1995-96 census) Sl.No. District No. of Handlooms 1 Bangalore (U) 25321 2 Bangalore 32975 3 Belagavi 14650 4 Bijapur 1750 5 Bagalkot 9918 6 Bellary 28 7 Bidar 00 8 Chikkamagalur 00 9 Chitradurga 14 10 Davangere 30 11 Dharwad 230 12 Haveri 1086 13 Gadag 1081 14 D.Kannada 04 15 Udupi 06 16 Gulbarga 34 17 Hassan 00 18 Kolar 250 19 Kodagu 06 20 Mandya 30 21 Mysore 101 22 Chamarajnagar 104 23 Raichur 89 24 Koppal 356 25 Shimoga 00 26 Tumkur 472 27 U.Kannada 31 Total 88566 Source: Department of Handlooms and Textiles, Bangalore 88
DISTRICT-WISE CLASSIFICATION OF HANDLOOMS AND POWERLOOMS IN KARNATAKA (1995-96 CENSUSES) Powerlooms Handlooms MAP-II 89
4.7 Handloom and Powerloom Industry of Belagavi District Introduction: Belagavi district is in the northern part of Karnataka state. There are 10 talukas in the districts, comprising of 1255 villages and 22 towns. Geographically the district can be divided into two regions, viz. transitional belt along with Western Ghats and Deccan plateau. The transitional belt along with Western Ghats is about 25 miles from Chikodi to Khanapur in north-south direction. Khanapur, Hukkeri, Belagavi, Chikodi talukas come under transitional belt. In Khanapur taluka, a high percentage of area is covered by a thick monsoon forest. The Deccan plateau comprises of Gokak, Athani, Bailahongal, Soundatti and Ramdurg talukas, which has a topography of wide villages, that are caused by Deccan plateau by Krishna river and her tributaries. Belagavi district is the fifth largest district in Karnataka state. The geographical area of the district is 13,641 Sq.kms, accounting for 6.99% of state territory. The population of the district is 4,214,505 as per 2001 census. The district has the literacy rate of 64.21%. The agricultural working population amounts to 68.91%. The newspaper reports reveal that according to 2011 census the population of the district is 4778439. The density of population is 356 90
per sq km. The literacy level in the district is 73.94% and sex ratio is 969 females per 1000 males. Industrial Scenario: The Belagavi district is endowed with stock of lime stones and other mineral resources like Bauxite, Chinaclay, fireclay, and Kanker. It has also adequate skilled and unskilled labour and enthusiastic entrepreneurs. The district has very good infrastructure facilities like industrial estates, transport and communication and finance. Department of Industries and commerce is providing assistance for setting up, expanding and modernizing industries and also for trade and export promotion. The district has the privilege of having rural industrial project and rural electricity co-operative society, which provide assistance in developing industries in rural areas. Despite these advantages, the industrialization has not picked up to the level of expectations. It is because the raw materials like hard coke, pigiron and steel are to be brought from northern parts of the country and also partly due to power famine. Textile based Industries: The textile industry of Belagavi district includes handlooms, powerlooms and spinning and weaving mills. It is one among the seven districts of the state where handlooms and powerlooms are 91
concentrated. Presently the handloom activity is diminishing on account of diversification to powerloom activity. The handlooms and powerlooms are noticed throughout the district. The taluka wise number of handlooms and powerlooms in Belagavi district is given in the table 4.8 Table-4.8 Taluka wise Classification of Handlooms and Powerlooms in Belagavi District (2009-10) Sl.No. Taluka Handlooms Powerlooms 1 Belagavi 170 9828 2 Hukkeri 570 1102 3 Khanapur 00 08 4 Bailahongal 155 1453 5 Soundatti 355 204 6 Ramdurg 1185 1793 7 Gokak 125 68 8 Raibag 55 00 9 Athani 350 46 10 Chikkodi 180 927 Total 3145 15429 Source: Department of Handlooms and Textiles, Belagavi. Table 4.8 explains that number of handlooms in Ramdurg taluka (1185) is highest in Belagavi district, followed by Hukkeri (570) and Soundatti (355). The talukas which are dominated by handlooms are mostly traditional and also backward. 92
In case of powerlooms the Ramdurg taluka has 1793 powerlooms, next only to Belagavi (9828). Bailahongal ranks third in terms of number of powerlooms (1453) in the district. The handloom and powerloom industry cannot be run without the pre-loom and post-loom activities. Quite a large number of persons are involved in pre and post loom activities. We have the statistics available with regard to the workers involved in pre-loom and post-loom activities in 10 talukas of Belagavi district. The statistics is given in the table 4.9. Table-4.9 Taluka wise Classification of workers engaged in pre-loom and post-loom activities in handlooms and powerlooms in Belagavi District Sl. No. Taluka Handloom workers in Pre-loom and Post loom activities Powerloom workers in pre-and post loom activities 1 Belagavi 510 29484 2 Hukkeri 1710 3306 3 Khanapur 00 24 4 Bailahongal 465 4359 5 Soundatti 1065 612 6 Ramdurg 2355 6768 7 Gokak 375 204 8 Raibag 165 00 9 Athani 1050 138 10 Chikkodi 540 2781 Total 8235 47676 Source: Department of handlooms and textiles, Belagavi. 93
The table 4.9 gives the details as regards the potentiality of handloom and powerloom Industry of Belagavi district in providing employment opportunities to the people of the district. Near about 56,000 people are engaged in pre and post loom activities together in handloom and powerloom sector. 94
TALUKA-WISE CLASSIFICATION OF HANDLOOMS AND POWERLOMMS IN BELAGAVI DISTRICT (2009-10) Handlooms Powerlooms MAP-III 95
REFERENCES 1. Government of Karnataka: Development Report-2007, pp. 639-640. 2. Sovenir: Creating Sustainable textile infrastructure in Karnataka, 66 th All India Textile Conference, January 28 th, 29 th 2011. 3. Mr. Edger Hartmann op. cit. 4. Gazetteer of India: Karnataka State- Part-I, 1982, pp. 897-8. 5. KHDC Project Report: 1986, pp. 34-35. 96