Sircilla weavers await yarn supply for Indira Mahila Shakthi sarees

Weavers in Rajanna-Sircilla are facing difficulties in producing Indira Mahila Shakthi sarees due to delays in yarn supply and rising yarn prices. With a July 31 deadline approaching, cooperative societies fear they may struggle to complete weaving orders on time.

Rajanna-Sircilla: The Israel-Iran conflict has had a debilitating effect on the handloom weavers of this town.

The weavers here are among the most worried now as they have a government order to weave saree cloth to the tune of 3.06 crore metres, but with yarn not being supplied to them, they are virtually sitting idle.

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To make matters worse, the government has set a deadline of July 31 for the supply of Indira Mahila Shakthi sarees. However, the yarn required for weaving the saree cloth has not been supplied.

The government had given an order for weaving 3.06 crore metres of saree cloth to the Mutually Aided Cooperative Societies (MACS). Saree cloth will be woven on 10,056 powerlooms operating under these societies.

Of the 130 MACS societies, 52 are eligible to get yarn from a depot established in Vemulawada. The societies will get yarn on 90 per cent credit. Initially, the weavers have to pay only 10 per cent of the amount. Though 80 to 90 per cent of the societies have already paid 10 per cent and submitted DDs to the Handlooms and Textiles Department, they have not been supplied yarn so far.

As a result, the weavers are worried about completing the weaving work within the deadline. The remaining societies, which weave cloth by purchasing yarn from the market, are also worried about the increase in yarn prices.

Crude oil plays a vital role in the manufacture of polyester and cotton yarn. Polyester yarn is used for weaving saree cloth. Therefore, the rise in crude oil prices due to the Israel-Iran conflict has led to an increase in yarn prices. A year ago, a kg of width yarn was available at Rs 160 to Rs 165. The price has now increased to Rs 185 to Rs 190. There has also been a rise of Rs 30 to Rs 40 in zari yarn prices. The price increased to Rs 400 from Rs 360 to Rs 370. A similar situation prevails with warp yarn.

Another difficulty faced by the weavers is that despite the increase in yarn prices, there has been no revision in the weaving charges paid to them. The government is paying Rs 34 per metre of cloth.

Speaking to Telangana Today, MACS general secretary Polu Sahankar said that except for limited quantities of width yarn supplied to a few societies, a majority of the societies had not received yarn. Therefore, it would not be possible to complete the weaving of cloth before the deadline.

In the wake of the increase in yarn prices, even large societies were facing difficulties due to pending bills. About Rs 200 crore worth of bills relating to sarees supplied last year, RVM, welfare departments and others were pending, he said, and urged the government to help the weavers by clearing the pending bills.