New Delhi, January 20: After its Rs 6,234 crore-package for small weavers, government on Thursday indicated it may give more financial support to them.
“…it (Rs 6,234 crore) sounds an impressive figure…the time will come when we will revisit and will do more (for the weavers),” Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said while inaugurating the Tex Trends India 2012 in New Delhi on Thursday.
In November 2011, the Cabinet had cleared a debt waiver package of Rs 3,884 crore for handloom weavers. The remaining Rs 2,350 crore was for a six-fold strategy to uplift weavers during the 12th Plan (2012-17).
The package would benefit 13 lakh weavers, including two lakh in Uttar Pradesh.
The Minister felt that small weavers need to be empowered. Sharma said that the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) would continue in the next plan period.
The government has allocated more than Rs 15,000 crore under the TUFS.
The TUFS provides plan support for modernisation of textiles industry in the form of interest reimbursement and capital subsidy.
The sectors benefited under the scheme are spinning, weaving, processing, technical textiles, jute, silk, garmenting, cotton ginning, wool and powerlooms.
—Agencies