CHENNAI : The free dhoti and saree scheme, one of the popular schemes in Tamil Nadu and wholly funded by the State Government, has attracted the Union Government's attention.

A couple of weeks ago, the State Government made a presentation before the Union Textiles Secretary D.P. Singh here on the the scheme. Impressed with this, the Centre held a meeting of senior officials, early this week in New Delhi, in which a representative of the State Textiles department also took part.

Sources say the Central Government is considering the adoption of such a scheme at the national level.

The Tamil Nadu scheme has a two-fold objective. One, sustained employment is provided to handloom weavers. The scheme benefits 19,200 handloom weavers exclusively engaged in the production of dhotis and sarees.

Two, clothing needs of people living below the poverty line (BPL) are addressed.

This scheme is in operation since 1990 and except for a few years, the Government has been distributing dhotis and sarees free to the poor during the Pongal festival every year.

While the Revenue department is the implementing agency of the scheme, the Tamil Nadu Handloom Weavers' Co-operative Society, popularly known as Co-optex, is the nodal agency. The former indicates the requirement of dhotis and sarees every year and the latter arranges the production of the required quantity through the handloom weavers enrolled in 250 weavers' cooperative societies spread over 13 districts.

If there is any balance in the production of dhotis and sarees to be met after fully utilising the production capacity of the weavers, it is made good by powerloom weavers' cooperative societies. Officials of Co-optex carry out quality check.

As the scheme has been going on smoothly, it has made the Centre consider replicating it at the all-India level, the sources say. Already, the Union Government is implementing schemes, such as integrated handloom cluster development scheme, marketing promotion programme and integrated handloom training project.

For 2006-07, Tamil Nadu has earmarked Rs. 273 crore. As in the previous year, 3.28 crore dhotis and sarees will be produced and distributed.

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