In the past year and a half, with the rapidly growing retail malls, India has attracted many international clothing and footwear brands.
Youth craves for trendy and fashionable outfits with global recognition and the concern for eco-friendly and organic materials is diminishing.
Though Khadi industry has revamped and adopted modern techniques and fashions, it has not achieved much success.
Retail sales of khadi in West Bengal amount to Rs48 crore, of which Rs27 crore come from inter-state sales.
While the branded products enjoy almost 200 percent profits each year, khadi can sqeeze in meager 15-20 percent.
Nripen Biswas, Convenor, W B Khadi Mission said, “The prejudice seems to be against the wrong people. When the tsunami struck, our artisans contributed from their savings and handed over a gift cheque for Rs25,000 to the Governor. It is a huge amount for daily wage labourers like them earning Rs60 per day.”
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