Thaindian News

Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 18 (IANS) Kerala will host a two-day handloom exhibition and a buyer-seller meet in October to promote the handloom products, a senior minister said here Monday. It would be held here Oct 17-18 and organised by the state-run Kerala State Handloom Development Corp and the Directorate of Handloom and Textiles, Industries Minister Elamaram Kareem told reporters.

“We expect around 300 buyers who will arrive from various parts of the country to take part in the two-day event. This would be a great impetus to the handloom industry,” he said.

The handloom sector in the state employs around 200,000 people, out of which 96.12 percent are working in the cooperative sector and the rest in private sector.

There are around 50,000 looms in Kerala, with majority of them are concentrated in the Thiruvananthapuram district.

“Today we are concentrating on development of clusters and there are 24 clusters which get support from the centre. The two-day event would give marketers and exporters an opportunity to adopt looms,” Kareem said.

Kerala now exports furnishing clothes to the tune of Rs.3 billion every year and the domestic demand will be high during Onam season (a regional festival).

“During the last Onam season, we sold handloom products worth Rs.220 million and this season we expect sales to touch Rs.350 million,” Handloom and Textiles Director Chandrasekhar said.