No Bathukamma sarees for women of Telangana this year
Govt shows no signs of continuing scheme launched by BRS regime
Hyderabad: Poor women in Telangana will have to look at options other than the State government this time to get the traditional Bathukamma sarees, a habit they had got used to for the last seven years. This is because the Congress government has so far shown no signs of continuing the traditional gifting of sarees to poor women during the seven-day flower festival that is an integral part of Telangana’s cultural identity.
The Bathukamma saree scheme, initiated and continued by the previous BRS government for seven years without a break even during the Covid pandemic, however looks like it has been shelved with the current government giving no orders to weavers despite Bonalu festivities commencing and the Bathukamma festival just a couple of months away. The previous government used to place the orders with weavers by January every year, with the weavers handing over the sarees by September and the government distributing them from late September to October.
Every year since 2017, the State government used to give nearly one crore Bathukamma sarees made using about 240 types of thread border in 25-30 different designs and in over 10 attractive colours.
However, this year, despite many powerlooms shutting down for lack of work and at least 12 weavers and ancillary workers dying by suicide after running into financial crisis on account of joblessness, the State government appears to have decided against placing Bathukamma sarees orders this year.
The worst part is that even if the government has a change of mind and places orders now, the weavers would not be able to ensure the sarees in time for the Bathukamma festivities.
It is not just the poor women of the State or the weavers who have been hit by the Congress government’s stance on the scheme. Bathukamma sarees have indirectly provided work for ancillary workers, including labourers, hamalis, auto drivers and also scores of traders who supply raw materials and handle transportation of the sarees.
From 2017, the State government used to place orders for nearly one crore sarees with an estimated budget of Rs.330 crore to Rs.350 crore. Of these, about 90 percent were manufactured in Sircilla and the rest in Karimnagar and Warangal. The practice of gifting sarees was not confined to Bathukamma or Dasara festivities, and was also continued during Ramzan and Christmas as well.
Last year, the BRS government had kept 1.02 crore sarees in 250 designs ready and sent them to distribution centres but was not allowed to distribute them following the Congress complaining to the Election Commission of India alleging violation of the model code of conduct.
“It is a policy decision that has to be taken by the State government. So far, there is no discussion on Bathukamma sarees,” a senior Handlooms official told ‘Telangana Today’.
It has been seven months and the State government has not said a word about Bathukamma saree orders. With just two months left for Bathukamma festivities, the possibilities of weavers getting the orders are bleak, another official said, adding that there was no clarity or confirmation of any alternate plans either.
Last Wednesday, weavers along with Padmashali Sangham and weavers’ cooperative society representatives had met Handlooms Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao at the Secretariat, explaining to him the hardships being faced by the weavers due to lack of work and seeking the government’s support.
The Minister had said that the government was working out long term plans and policies that would benefit the weavers and that different departments were asked to procure products from Telangana State Handloom Weavers Cooperative Society Limited (TSCO) thus generating orders worth Rs.250 crore.
But weavers feel that is not enough.
“We are appealing to the government to place Bathukamma orders as it would ensure work for about four to five months to weavers. If the government does not want to name them as Bathukamma sarees, it could rename the sarees but orders have to be placed to bail out weavers from the crisis,” CITU Rajanna Sircilla Powerloom Workers union secretary Kodam Ramana said.
