Initiatives in National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP)

 National Handloom Development Programme is a central sector scheme that aims to support weavers inside and outside the cooperative fold, including Self-Help Groups, NGOs, etc.

About the NHDP:

♦ This is a central sector scheme that aims to support weavers inside and outside the cooperative fold, including Self-Help Groups, NGOs, etc.

♦ It follows a demand-based approach to the integrated and holistic development of handlooms and the welfare of handloom weavers.

♦ It supports weavers in obtaining raw materials, design inputs, technology upgrades, marketing, providing support through exhibitions, and establishing permanent infrastructure in the form of Urban Haats, marketing complexes, and development of web portals for e-marketing of handloom products.

♦ In this way, the weavers benefit from exempting overdue loans, obtaining loans at a preferential interest rate, participating in exhibitions/ fairs/craft melas, selling handloom products, loom upgrading and training to increase income.

♦ The main components of the scheme include:

♦ ♦ Block-level cluster project

♦ ♦ Marketing assistance for handlooms

♦ ♦ Preferential credit

♦ ♦ Handloom census (data on handloom weavers, the number of handlooms, the number of handlooms engaged in commercial and household use, etc.)

♦ ♦ Some other components include handloom parks, research and development, publicity, training, etc.