The Union Ministry for Textiles announced many initiatives including the proposal of setting up of Geographical Indication (GI) tag helpdesks at every handicraft and handloom office in the country.

Addressing at the National Workshop on Promotion of Unique textiles and Handicrafts for GI and Post GI initiatives in New Delhi, the Union Textile Minister Smriti Irani emphasised on the importance and relevance of the GI tag.  

She said that the tag will help both the maker of the fabric and the consumer.

The Minister also highlighted the challenges faced by the artisan and handloom community in relation to the GI mechanism. To address this, the Minister announced the launch of a helpline for the handicraft artisans.

Irani further informed that the Ministry has started the collection of data for the first Handloom census. The handloom weavers will be given the identity cards once the census completes, i.e. before the next National Handloom Day.

Minister of State for Textile, Ajay Tamta who was also present at the event, highlighted several steps taken by the Ministry to strengthen the GI. The Minister said that the adoption to GI would benefit the handicraft and handloom sectors in preserving the rich cultural heritage associated with the art.

Rashmi Verma; Chairperson of Craft Revival Trust, Officials from Centre for International Cooperation in Agronomics Research and Development (CIRAD); and handicraft artisans from across the country were present at the event.