Rasulpur: Weavers in Gopalpur village of Prathamakhandi panchayat under Rasulpur block in Jajpur district have been left without any work due to acute shortage of raw materials like tussar cocoons. This has robbed them of their livelihood as many of them are withdrawing from weaving which has been their profession for generations. They are now in search of alternative occupations to eke out a living despite good demand for tussar clothes in the market. The matter came to the fore during the visit of Ashutosh Mohanty, deputy director of state Handloom and Textiles department to the village, Friday. Mohanty visited the village and held a review meeting with the weavers in the village.
In the meeting, the weavers apprised him about their problems and sought his intervention. The meeting was held at the office of the Maa Tarini Tantubaya Sahajog Samiti and attended by the leaders of weavers’ association. In the meeting, the weavers drew the attention of the deputy director towards the unavailability of raw materials like tussar for weaving. The weavers alleged that the absence of raw materials has stopped them from earning a livelihood while the absence of proper marketing facilities has posed challenges for them. As many as 1,000 weavers have been left without any work for the reason, the weaver leaders Ramesh Das, Ashok Kumar Guin, Makardhwaj Guin, Prashant Kumar Das and the office bearers of 17 weavers cooperative societies alleged.
Later, a discussion was also held on proper utilization of weavers’ assistance provided by the Centre and state governments. Meanwhile, many of the weavers have applied online seeking assistance. The weaver leaders stressed that identifying the eligible weavers from the list and providing them with assistance should be the priority.
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Notably, the weavers applying under POHI (Promotion of Handloom Industries) scheme are being supplied with looms and raw materials. The deputy director assured them that those who have been deprived of the assistance will be supplied with looms and raw materials in phases. When questioned about the availability of raw materials, the deputy director said that silkworm farmers are facing loss in their cultivation due to adverse climatic conditions occurring in the state for the last few years.
Moreover, notification has been issued for the election of board members in Serifed which is supplying tussar cocoons to the weavers, he said. The model code of conduct is in force for which Serifed is not able to supply tussar cocoons to the farmers. The problem of tussar shortage will be removed once the election gets over, he added. Technical assistant Srikant Mishra conducted the meeting.