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Dyed in Wool
 Angora shawls, Pashmina stoles, Merino blends and the banned Shahtoosh. Things are happening on the wool front, led by an aggressive Shankersinh Vaghela. The Union Textile Minister is setting a punishing pace
Shankersinh Vaghela is not your average career politician. He is more like a general, who has been assigned the task of fighting two battles on two different fronts. As the Gujarat Congress chief he has the unenviable task of taking on the formidable Chief Minister Narendra Modi. As Union Textiles Minister he is in the trenches, battling sundry competitors like China in a quota-free world. So different are the challenges that it’s almost like living in different universes—dishing out slogans against Modi even as he is socking it to the knitpicking Chinese.
Central Wool Development Board
In fact, shortly after the last elections, while most politicians were either counting the spoils of polls—or licking their wounds—Vaghela was busy at work. His ministry constituted a committee to help the textiles sector which contributes significantly to Indian exports. He wanted to create a Brand India—whether it be for silk, cotton, wool or jute—so that Indian textile could make their mark abroad.
But then credibility is a Vaghela trademark. After having spent 30 long years in the RSS—long enough to be deep dyed in the right-wing ‘taint’ of Hindutva—Vaghela is winning friends and influencing people in the Congress’ side of the spectrum. He is perhaps the one Congress leader who has the mettle to unsettle Modi.
 To give the wool and woollen industry a major fillip, the Government has set up the Central Wool Development Board (CWDB), headquartered at Jodhpur. Various development schemes are implemented through the state Governments concerned. Wool testing laboratories for testing are provided. Besides, there is a design and training centre at Kullu that trains rural women, honing their skills in weaving. Needless to say, this also keeps the wheels of the souvenier tourism industry rolling.
Bhuttico, for instance, is certainly doing the cause of this industry no harm. It runs cooperatives in Kullu that tap the grassroots and involve local people in an organized manner; a dyeing unit is in the pipeline too. Bhuttico also undertakes marketing activities that eventually lead to empowerment and jobs in the region.
The rural and pastoral go hand in hand with the modern. Computer-aided designs are being used more and more to enhance the saleability of traditional designs. All this with an eye on the export market.
CWDB has been carrying out various important activities for promotion of wool and woollens in the country. Coarser wool are used for carpets, and blankets (typically known as the Kambli variety). The finer wool, blended with imported Merino, goes into apparel.
Says Sangeeta Rao, Under Secretary and spokesperson, Ministry of Textiles, “We are constantly working towards better marketing and brand building to put India on the world wool map.” |
