Study of Handloom Products of Manipur with Special Reference to Its Marketisation

Abstract

The Handloom sector of Manipur is the largest cottage industry in the State. This sector provides employment and livelihood to 2,12,481 weavers and 12,203 allied workers in the State. The industry has produced many skilled weavers who have received both national and state award for their unique handloom fabric designs. Handloom fabrics of Manipur are in high demand in other parts of India and abroad. The type of fabrics produced by the weavers are varied starting from a small napkin to more luxurious items like sarees, raniphee, wangkheiphee etc. The study is undertaken to study some of the commonly produced handloom fabrics and the present marketing channels adopted by the weavers of the State. The markets are mostly localized with only 70 weavers household reporting export of their handloom products (4^th All India Handloom Census, 2019-20). The market is an unorganized one with no control over buying, selling and pricing of the product. There is almost no promotion activity for the handloom products, which is also one of the reasons why the market is not expanding to a wider scale.