Assam’s Handloom and Textiles Department has been prevented from taking any legal action against businessmen selling powerloom made gamosas and mekhela-chadors due to the lack of any laboratory in Assam.
The department has to ascertain the seized items being made from powerlooms via tests in laboratories designated by the Union Ministry of Textiles, according to State Handlooms and Textiles Department sources. The seized goods have to be sent to the Textile Committee in Kolkata for testing even though the department has experts who can distinguish handloom products from powerloom products.
However, the Textile Committee of Kolkata has repeatedly expressed their inability to distinguish handloom and powerloom products that are identical. Due to this inability on the part of the Textile Committee, the department has been prevented from legal action against businessmen who sell powerloom products in Assam.
The department has been seizing powerloom products since March 1st 2023 with the help of district administration and police. Several enforcement squads are available to the department but it has no sent seized goods to the Textile Committee in Kolkata, which has stated that they do not know how to distinguish between powerloom and handloom products.
Meanwhile, the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST) located at Boragaon has claimed to have developed software that can distinguish handloom products from powerloom products. However, the software is still at the final stage of research, department sources have said.
