Tamil Nadu

Powerloom units seek subsidy

By M. Soundariya Preetha

COIMBATORE: : Hit by a slump in market for a particular type of fabric during the last one month, power loom units at Somanur are searching for avenues to bounce back.

One immediate effort should be to upgrade the looms to improve the fabric quality, some of the loom owners point out.

Of the 55,000 looms in the Somanur and Karumathampatti areas in the district that do job work (totally more than 70,000 looms operate in these areas), 10 per cent make low-cost fabric (priced at Rs. 10 a metre). This is marketed mainly to Ahmedabad, and units weaving this type have almost come to a standstill in the past one month. "The slump is unusual as the demand is normally good in summer," says P. Kumarasamy, secretary, Coimbatore District Job Working Powerloom Owners' Association.

If the units have to improve the quality of the fabric and produce other varieties (priced at Rs. 12 or Rs. 13), they need to modernise the looms. Accessories will have to be attached to the looms so that defects in fabric can be reduced and weaving is continuous. This will cost Rs. 10,000 a loom. The State Government last year provided a subsidy of Rs. 5,000 a loom for these accessories. However, it was given only to those weavers under the co-operative umbrella. Now, just 10,000 looms at Somanur and nearby places have these additional fittings.

He says the owners, however, will not be able to bear the cost of modernisation, as most of the units are small with only six-12 looms. Hence, the Centre should to provide as grant the amount needed to upgrade the looms, or at least 50 per cent of the cost to those willing to modernise their units.

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