Handloom houses of Mangalagiri see slide in sales, officials claim little impact
VIJAYAWADA: Sales in the handloom houses of Mangalagiri, known for their handloom sarees, has dropped under the impact of GST compared to the figure in June.
Those representing the handloom industry say it is too early to know the impact of GST on the handloom sector and a clear picture would emerge only after 3-4 months.Mangalagiri has around 2,000 handlooms and an equal number of families are dependent on them for their livelihood. Some of these looms form societies and market their own products while some weave sarees for the handloom shops and emporiums on a commission basis.
Though officials of the handloom department maintain that there has been little impact on sales of handloom products in Mangalagiri, the shops and emporiums differ and say their sales have come down drastically.
“Usually, we supply mangalgiri handloom sarees and other products to shops in other states but after GST has been implemented, there has been a slowdown in the market. Our customers want to wait and watch for some time before they buy products from us, which in turn is causing losses,” G Ravindra, of a noted handloom house in Mangalagiri, said.
He said that on an average they do the business worth Rs 40,000 a month, but in July business has been only half that amount. He said it is due to confusion over GST on the final product. However, since a fortnight, they started issuing bills with 5 percent GST.
A handloom master weaver, who did not wish to be named, said one cannot confine the impact of GST to just private entities selling the product. “GST of 5 percent on hank yarn, GST of 28 percent on the colours used for dying of those yarns will increase the production cost and with five percent on the final product, the cost of the handloom saree or any other handloom product will only increase. This will have an impact on sales, which in turn will impact production. This means loss of work for the weaver,” he said, adding that it will have a domino effect on the handloom sector.
J Sivanarayana, assistant director of the handlooms department in Guntur district, said it is too early to say that GST has caused a disturbance in the handloom sector. “Most people are unaware of what GST is and there is lack of clarity on certain aspects,” he said.