Parliament Question: Promotion of Skill Development for Handloom Weavers

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *202 ANSWERED ON 03.08.2026 PROMOTION OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT FOR HANDLOOM WEAVERS *202. SHRI T R BAALU: Will the Minister of SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government has taken any initiative to promote Skill Development and Entrepreneurship training programmes in fashion designing for the handloom weavers particularly, rural women to improve their livelihood opportunities; (b) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and (c) the details of number of handloom workers benefitted under the said programmes during the last three years and the current year along with the expenditure incurred by the Government on such schemes during the said period, State/UT-wise? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) IN THE MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP (SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY) (a) to (c): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.STATEMENT REFERRED IN REPLY TO PART (A) TO (C) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *202 ANSWERED ON 03.08.2026 REGARDING ‘PROMOTION OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT FOR HANDLOOM WEAVERS’ ASKED BY SHRI T R BAALU (a) to (c): Government of India actively implements several initiatives targeting skill development, and entrepreneurship training for handloom weavers, including fashion designing, with a special emphasis on empowering rural women. The Handloom Sector is one of the largest unorganized economic activities of India and it constitutes an integral part of the rural and semi- rural livelihood engaging over 35 lakh persons. The sector engages over 25 lakh female weavers and allied workers which make it an important source of economic empowerment of women. ▪ Under the Skill India Mission (SIM), the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) delivers skill, re-skill and up-skill training through an extensive network of skill development centres under various schemes, viz. Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS), National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) and Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS) through Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), to all the sections of the society across the country including handloom weavers. The SIM aims at enabling youth of India to get future ready and equipped with industry relevant skills, including handloom weaving. State/UT-wise details of handloom workers trained under schemes of MSDE during the last three years and the current year (up to 30th June 2026) is given at Annexure-I. ▪ SAMARTH (Scheme for Capacity Building in Textile Sector) is a demand-driven, placement-oriented skilling program of Ministry of Textiles that targets the sustainable creation of livelihoods and provides entry-level training, upskilling, and reskilling across the entire textile value chain including handloom and handicrafts. State/UT-wise details of handloom workers trained under Samarth during the last three years and current year up to 29th July 2026 is given at Annexure-II. ▪ National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP) is the flagship Central Sector scheme implemented by the Ministry of Textiles to provide holistic, need- based support to handloom weavers. Under National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP) need based financial support is provided for various interventions like provision of upgraded looms & accessories, construction of worksheds, lighting units, product & design development as well as Concessional Credit under Weaver MUDRA Scheme from the Banks/financial institutions to the handloom sector to meet their credit requirement for term loan & working capital in a flexible and cost-effective manner (Annexure III & IV). The Government promotes the formation and strengthening of Handloom Producer Companies (HPCs) as a key institutional mechanism for organizing handloom weavers into professionally managed, member owned enterprises. 237 Handloom Producer Companies are formed under NHDP during 2020-21 to 2025-26. About 1.50 lakh weavers/handloom entities are on-boarded on Government e-Marketplace (GeM) for marketing of handloom products to the Government Departments. The Government has also developed India handmade as a dedicated e-commerce platform for authentic handloom products, including GI-tagged products, enabling verified weavers and producer groups to sell directly to consumers. Overall, 5413 weavers have been onboarded onto India handmade platform during 2023-24 to 2026-27 (up to 30.06.2026). ▪ Craft Cluster Initiative: National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), in collaboration with the offices of DC-Handlooms and DC-Handicrafts emphasizeson extensive fieldwork and collaboration between students and artisans across India. Through research and design projects, students work to uplift traditional crafts and blend them with contemporary design elements. ▪ Six Indian Institute of Handloom Technology (IIHT) (Varanasi, Salem, Bargarh, Fulia, Guwahati, Jodhpur) uphold academic excellence in handloom and textile education through three-year Diploma and four-year B. Tech programs. ▪ Funds under PMKVY are released to implementing agencies for meeting the training cost as per prescribed norms. Under JSS scheme, funds are released to Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) directly. Under NAPS, stipend support up to Rs 1500/- per month is released to apprentices through DBT and not to the establishments covered. Day to day administration as well as financial control in respect of CTS scheme implemented through ITIs lies with the respective State Government/UT Administration. Total funds released for implementation of PMKVY, NAPS and JSS during the last three years and the current year (up to 30th June 2026) are given as under: Fund Released (Rs in Cr) Schemes 2023-24 2024-25 2025-26 2026-27 ( up to 30.06. 2026) PMKVY 510.52 1538.00 265.57 78.28 JSS 154.3 139.5 148.2 36.32 NAPS 594.30 585.96 577.03 178.87 There is no state/district wise allocation of funds under NHDP and Samarth Schemes. Under NHDP, financial assistance is provided to trainees as wage loss compensation of Rs.300/- per day per trainee. Total funds released for implementation of Samarth Schemes from year 2023-24 till June, 2026 are given as under: Fund Released (Rs in Cr) Schemes 2023-24 2024-25 2025-26 2026-27 (up to 30.06. 2026) Samarth 114.99 260.26 255.42 78.07Annexure-I ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) TO (c) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *202 ANSWERED ON 03.08.2026 REGARDING ‘PROMOTION OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT FOR HANDLOOM WEAVERS’ State-wise details of handloom workers trained/enrolled under various schemes of MSDE the last three years and the current year (up to 30th June 2026): PMKVY JSS NAPS CTS ( ITIs) State/UT ( 2023 to 2025) Overall female Overall Female Overall Female Overall Female Andhra Pradesh - - 1,120 1038 1,138 714 - - Arunachal 315 - - - - 311 1 - Pradesh Assam 6,804 6,653 220 210 375 252 - - Bihar 20 20 2,260 2234 48 6 - - Chandigarh - - 23 23 - - Chhattisgarh - - - - 114 81 - - Delhi - - 760 574 118 33 - - Goa - - 40 34 51 49 - - Gujarat - - 440 440 23,503 9,105 - - Haryana 60 20 280 113 3,883 1,636 - - Himachal 135 484 472 - - 36 6,421 2,462 Pradesh Jammu And - - - - - - 84 46 Kashmir Jharkhand - - 20 11 4 2 - - Karnataka - - 2,980 2925 8,474 3,851 - - Kerala - - 2,960 2825 510 81 - - Lakshadweep - - 186 179 - - - - Madhya Pradesh - - 1,660 1588 15,624 8,144 - - Maharashtra 166 53 880 750 10,295 4,299 180 69 Manipur 671 658 160 159 133 84 - - Meghalaya 57 57 - - 66 66 18 18 Mizoram 321 281 40 39 6 6 - - Odisha 40 40 2,100 1685 54 49 60 40 Puducherry - - - - 36 4 - - Punjab 270 184 - - 7,930 4,348 99 9 Rajasthan 709 396 780 619 6,080 1,305 - - Tamil Nadu 38 21 300 261 5,667 2,930 171 36 Telangana - - 280 280 772 339 - - DNH and DD - - - - 2,464 938 - - Uttar Pradesh 614 173 2,573 2501 3,897 1,990 67 13 Uttarakhand - - 700 686 1,138 664 - - West Bengal 362 279 100 84 2,022 1,178 - - Nagaland 51 46 - - - - - - Tripura - - 120 119 - - - - Overall 10,633 9,228 21,466 19,849 1,00,908 44,662 595 185Annexure-II ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) TO (c) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *202 ANSWERED ON 03.08.2026 REGARDING ‘PROMOTION OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT FOR HANDLOOM WEAVERS’ State-wise details of Handloom weavers trained under Samarth Scheme during the last three years and current year (up to 29th July 2026): S. No. State/UTs Handloom Weaver trained Overall Women 1 Andhra Pradesh 766 472 2 Assam 10487 10307 3 Bihar 670 394 4 Chhattisgarh 1274 926 5 Gujarat 849 581 6 Haryana 314 297 7 Himachal Pradesh 435 426 8 Jammu and Kashmir 692 537 9 Jharkhand 735 643 10 Karnataka 839 741 11 Kerala 832 816 12 Madhya Pradesh 920 559 13 Maharashtra 1737 1528 14 Manipur 620 611 15 Mizoram 802 778 16 Nagaland 654 600 17 Odisha 1099 880 18 Punjab 98 88 19 Rajasthan 594 407 20 Tamil Nadu 2236 1707 21 Telangana 1042 772 22 Tripura 478 468 23 Uttar Pradesh 1757 1212 24 Uttarakhand 369 341 25 West Bengal 763 535 Ove rall 31062 26626Annexure-III ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) TO (c) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *202 ANSWERED ON 03.08.2026 REGARDING ‘PROMOTION OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT FOR HANDLOOM WEAVERS’ State/UT-wise details of upgraded looms & accessories, construction of worksheds, lighting units provided under NHDP during last three years S State/UTs No. of upgraded looms & No. of individual No. of lighting No accessories workshed units 1 Andhra Pradesh 4184 709 625 2 Arunachal 523 155 526 Pradesh 3 Assam 1096 694 - 4 Bihar 89 87 42 5 Chhatisgarh 2429 59 - 6 Gujarat 226 - 15 7 Haryana 56 7 - 8 Himachal 364 251 76 Pradesh 9 Jharkhand 224 88 262 10 Karnataka 3044 18 95 11 Kerala 3756 464 697 12 Madhya Pradesh - 60 - 13 Maharashtra 236 51 219 14 Manipur 25002 368 450 15 Meghalaya - 60 - 16 Mizoram 30 170 - 17 Nagaland 200 17 - 18 Odisha 60 - 160 19 Rajasthan 142 54 76 20 Tamil nadu 5466 581 348 21 Telangana 1391 73 16 22 Tripura 210 27 - 23 Uttar Pradesh 127 76 142 24 Uttrakhand 36 39 - 25 West Bengal - 108 - Overall 48891 4216 3749Annexure-IV ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) TO (c) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *202 ANSWERED ON 03.08.2026 REGARDING ‘PROMOTION OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT FOR HANDLOOM WEAVERS State-wise number of loan and amount of loan sanctioned under NHDP during last three years and current year (up to 30.06.2026) S No Name of the State No. of Loans Loan Amount (Rs Lakh) sanctioned sanctioned 1 Andhra Pradesh 5987 5881.37 2 Bihar 44 45.40 3 Goa 01 1.90 4 Jammu & Kashmir 1336 1847.21 5 Karnataka 382 197.96 6 Kerala 883 573.57 7 Madhya Pradesh 150 181.90 8 Maharashtra 03 8.04 9 Odisha 34 29.00 10 Puducherry 01 1.00 11 Tamil Nadu 13790 8049.58 12 Telangana 680 784.66 13 Uttar Pradesh 164 208.35 14 West Bengal 12 4.75 15 Assam 861 413.70 16 Manipur 104 52.00 Total 24432 18280.39 *****