In some good news for Karnataka, a 91-year-old khadi institution has been revived in Mysuru and a divisional office of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) opened in Hubli after 30 years. Inaugurating the Hubli office, Union Minister of State for Drinking Water and Sanitation Ramesh Chandappa Jigajinagi said that the Centre was committed to safeguard the interest of weavers and has released Rs 32.28 crore for khadi institutions in the state. Hailing the KVIC for releasing 100 per cent of grants, he said, "It is a great day for the weavers and spinners of Karnataka as this state has produced khadi products worth Rs 135 crore and of them products worth Rs 109 crore have been sold." The inauguration was followed by a conclave 'Khadi Artisans Sammelan' where more than 6,000 artisans from across the state took part, the KVIC said in a statement. The KVIC has also re-opened its Heritage Bandanavalu Khadi institution in Badanavalu village in Mysuru which was shut 25 years ago following caste violence. Taking in account the historic importance and the needs of the artisan families that lost livelihood support, KVIC Chairman V K Saxena decided to revive the centre which was started in 1926 by four Dalit women on the advice of Mahatma Gandhi to adopt khadi as a vehicle for self-reliance. It is not the revival of a nonagenarian khadi institution, rather it is also a tribute to those four lion-hearted Dalit women - who dared to fight against the social evils with Gandhian tool of self-reliance during the British rule, Saxena said. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi's love and affection for khadi has given tremendous energy to KVIC to revive all historical institutions in the country," he said, adding, "We also brought in market interface and revived not only khadi activities, but also the village industries activities in a modest way, with a plan to increase the support in a gradual manner." Elaborating on the institution, Saxena said that sanitary conditions in the campus have also been improved by constructing two toilets and a capacity for khadi production to the tune of over Rs 5 lakh a month has been initiated, fetching over Rs 200 per woman employee per day as wage.
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