The powerloom weavers in Bhiwandi, India, are reportedly still struggling to bring back normalcy to their businesses post the announcement of Government policies such as demonetisation and GST (Goods and Services Tax). Frequent policy changes introduced by the Government are yet to be fructified for these weavers.
Maharashtra is a home to 50 per cent of around 2.5 million powerlooms working in India. These are majorly located in Bhiwandi, Malegaon, Ichalkaranji, Sholapur, Nagpur and other textile clusters of the state. The textile hub is now hoping for some favourable steps from the Centre that would yield better results for them in 2018.
A large number of powerloom units in the region (Bhiwandi) have been out of operations since the introduction of above-mentioned policy reforms. The industry is broadly dependent on cash transactions for businesses and is yet to find a smooth way to come out of the problem. Also, few of the weavers struggled to lock a deal with traders while finalising rates for fabrics due to GST.
As reported by a leading Indian daily, the next generation of various master weavers has decided not to pursue the family business, considering the sluggish business. The weaver community state that policies have to be executed well to be fruitful.
