THE SORRY STATE OF SAREE MAKERS

Arani weavers say parties turning a blind eye to issues such as GST on raw materials, lack of subsidies & nil flood relief

- PRAVEENA S A

BEADS of sweat fall from the face of Velu, a 56-year-old weaver from Sevoor village in Arani of Tiruvannamalai, as he pedals and moves the weft simultaneously to let the heddle pass through the warp in his handloom.

He takes a brief break to explain how the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and the increasing number of power looms have struck a severe blow to the once-thriving handloom weaving industry in Arani.

A Velu has been weaving silk sarees from the age of 13. Weavers like him who have a handloom at home usually take orders from persons involved in silk saree business.

While the businesspersons supply raw materials, the weavers get them the final product for a price. "In all these years, our work has never dried up as much as it has since the implementation of GST. The situation worsened after the pandemic," Velu told TNIE.

The town is renowned for its silk-weaving industry and Arani pattu (silk) is as popular as Kancheepuram pattu. Before GST came in, essential raw materials for handloom weaving such as plain twisted silk yarn, zari, and dyeing products enjoyed tax exemptions or lower tax rates. Now, the purchase of raw materials like silk yarn and zari attract 5% GST each and there is separate taxation for twisting and dyeing of the silk.