Need to put Handloom Census data in public domain: Goyal

New Delhi: Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Sunday stressed upon the need to put the Census data of Handlooms, pertaining to over 35 lakh handloom workers, in the public domain for transparency and validation so that the benefits of handloom schemes reach the genuine beneficiaries.

Addressing an event on the National Handloom Day, the Minister for Textiles and Commerce and Industry emphasised upon free of cost onboarding on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) for maximum number of handloom products so that artisans can avail selling opportunities in government procurement.

Goyal also highlighted the need to connect weavers and artisans with a greater clientele in both domestic as well as international markets, an official statement said.

Stating that the e-commerce initiatives should be utilised to the fullest, he said the emphasis should be on onboarding of handloom weavers and handicraft artisans on the GeM portal in large numbers, while simultaneously making it incumbent upon all government departments to purchase handloom products for their textile needs.

He asked the ministries of commerce and industry and textiles to join hands to facilitate the process.