Handicraft, handloom artisans earn Rs 50 a day

Artisans engaged in the handicraft and handloom sectors in the State are earning less than Rs 50 per head a day, according to information furnished in the State Assembly by Handlooms, Textiles and Handicrafts Minister Snehangini Chhuria in response to  a question of BJP MLA Dilip Ray on Saturday.

According to information, there were 1,29,958 handicraft artisans in Odisha as a census conducted in 2001-02. In 2014-15, handicraft products worth Rs 105.45 crore had been produced and, on it, products worth Rs 83 crore exported and items worth Rs 2 crore was sold outside Odisha by the Utkalika. Similarly, products worth Rs 120.56 crore were produced in 2016-17 of which products  worth Rs 194 lakh exported and items of Rs 206 lakh sold outside the State by the Utkalika. If handicraft production of 2016-17 is taken into account, it is accounted that each artisan produces items worth Rs 25.41 a day.

Similarly, the Minister informed that there were 1, 03,158 handloom weavers, constituting 40, 683 families, were in the State in 2009-10. In 2014-15, handloom products worth Rs 205.66 crore had been produced out of which products worth Rs 84 lakh exported and items worth Rs 11.33 crore sold outside the State. In 2016-17, products worth Rs 236.96 lakh were produces out of which items worth Rs 2.40 crore exported and items worth Rs 6.69 crore sold outside the State.

If production of 2016-17 is taken into account, then a handloom weaver’s daily production is amounted to Rs 62.93. If both the per-head figures are taken, an artisan’s daily income comes to less than Rs 50.