Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Handloom village project set to take off after initial lag

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Government has cleared the ground for a project to establish a handloom village at Vellikkulam, near Balaramapuram, in the suburbs, under plans to revive the handloom sector.

The proposal, which was bogged down for 10 months, is now set to take off. As many as 1,000 handloom weavers in the area are expected to benefit from the project to be implemented by the Department of Tourism with assistance from the Union Government.

The project had made no headway after Minister for Home Kodiyeri Balakrishnan laid the foundation stone in November 2006.

The proposed village is part of the Government’s initiative to promote the traditional industrial sector as a value-addition for tourism. It is aimed at reviving the flagging fortunes of the 18 handloom houses in the neighbourhood and providing a platform for the weavers to sell their products.

The project features accommodation facility for tourists, exhibition of handloom products and a storage house, apart from parking facilities, telephone and Internet kiosks and a food court. It is also designed to boost the export of handloom goods.

“We have plans to set up a loom for live display of weaving for the benefit of tourists visiting the village”, says officer-in-charge Sivadutt.

In the first phase of the project, the cluster of 18 handloom houses would be provided with financial assistance to repair their looms.

“The decks have been cleared for the Rs.68-lakh project that will be taken up under the Rural Tourism Scheme of the Union Government”, says N. Venunath, Assistant Planning Officer, Department of Tourism.

By providing a clean and friendly environment, the Tourism authorities hope to attract tourists, especially foreigners, in large numbers to the village. The proximity of Kovalam beach resort would help bring in more tourists.

“With powerloom products from Tamil Nadu flooding the market, the traditional handloom sector in Kerala is fighting for survival. The handloom village project will provide us with an opportunity to overcome the competition. The weavers were worried over the delay in getting the project off the ground,” says Manoharan, who heads one of the handloom houses in the village.

Apart from promoting tourism and the handloom industry, the project is also expected to lead to the overall development of Vellikkulam village.

Electrification of the whole area, providing telephone and Internet coverage and construction of a railway overbridge are the other components of the project.

It also includes the construction of biogas plant, tube wells for water supply and resurfacing of roads.

The Tourism Department has plans to construct an arch on the road leading from the national highway to the village.

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