WARANGAL: Uncertainty looms large over Kothawada weavers’ business. These weavers in Warangal city are famous for supplying bedsheets, cotton carpets (dhurries), and fabric for school uniforms to government-run educational institutions. However, these skilled artisans have been unable to make ends meet in recent years due to plummeting demand.
“We haven’t received any orders from traders or government agencies for months. With no takers, the stocks have been lying in our houses,” said a weaver from Kothawada. Even though Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao promised to support the handloom weavers, the artisans continue to face severe hardships in eking out a living.
As many as 2,000 families in the area entirely rely on traditional handloom works for sustenance. These also include the weavers who won several national and international awards for their craft. But today, they are on the brink of shutting down their ancestral craft.
Speaking to TNIE, Telangana handloom association president Chippa Venkateshwarlu said the Kothawada durries were internationally acclaimed for their quality and design.“The weavers in Warangal gained good support under the Nizam rule. They used to make tablecloths, towels, bedsheets, carpets, and other things,”
he said.
He alleged that IT Minister KT Rama Rao was only focused on helping power loom workers of the Sircilla district, thus, ignoring the weavers in Warangal. “We appealed to the State government to help the handloom weavers several times, but nobody has come forward so far,” Venkateshwarlu said.
“After the formation of Telangana State, we had expected our lives to improve, but we are losing whatever support we had earlier. We urged the State government to help the handloom industry and the weavers who are struggling to keep it alive,” he said.