People throng kiosks at the handloom exhibition-cum-sale in Berhampur. Pictures by Gopal Krishna Reddy

Berhampur, Jan. 7: A weeklong district level handloom exhibition has been organised by Development Commissioner for Handlooms, government of India and the State Directorate of Textiles in Berhampur.

The inaugural day of the fair saw several visitors thronging the St Stephen’s Church in the Silk City to buy an array of products on display.

Forty kiosks from various districts including Bargarh, Balangir, Sonepur, Boudh, Cuttack, Athagada, Khurda besides Ganjam are showcasing handlooms manufactured by the weavers of the respective districts.

Weavers’ co-operative societies (WCS) such as the Laxminarayan WCS Athagada, Rukmnidevi WCS Nuapatna, Cuttack, Gangadhar WCS Sonepur, Maa Samaleswari WCS Bargarh, Trinath WCS Balangir and many others have opened up kiosk at the exhibition, where handloom fabrics of different varieties in the form of sarees, dhotis, loincloth, bed sheet, embellished dress material of both cotton and silk items are available.

Weavers’ cooperatives of Ganjam who are famous for their Berhampuri silk patta sarees are a big draw in this exhibition cum sale.

The expo would enable the buyers to have direct interaction with the weavers to buy original handloom products.

The customers were found to be busy looking for Berhampur Patta, Pittala Sarees, Sambalpuri textile materials, Khandua Patta, Maniabandha sarees, Bomkai cotton and silk sarees.

Both weavers as well as visitors seem to be happy with the opportunity the event has brought. Bansidhar Kundu, president Rukmini Devi WCS, Nuapatna, Cuttack is very optimistic about the sale in Berhampur. “The handloom products are in great demand here which is rightly regarded as the Silk City. We sold handlooms worth Rs one lakh in the pre-Dussera expo at Berhampur and we expect a sale of about Rs two-lakh during this pre-Pongal expo,” said Bansidhar.

However, he expressed his dismay over the rising price of the cotton and silk yarn used as raw materials in the handloom sector.

“The yarn which was priced at Rs 1,600 per kilo six months ago has risen to Rs 3,400 per kilo. We generally use yarn from Malda in Bengal and Bangalore in Karnataka,”said Bansidhar.

“The government must provide subsidy in purchase of the yarn and enhance the wages of the weavers from Rs 550 to Rs 850 per saree to facilitate the weavers,” he said.

The rate of the patta saree has been almost doubled during these six months but the wages for the weavers remain same, added another weaver. “The wages provide for hand to mouth for our family and we are struggling to survive,” he added.

“The weavers have brought some amazing designs and since this is a festive season in our city, owing to the upcoming Makar Sankranti, we are happy top find so many options to shop,” said homemaker Gouri Tripathy.

“Through the fair we wish to promote traditional handloom of different parts of the state,” said Upendra Kumar Debta, assistant director, textiles, Berhampur. The exhibition remains open from 3 pm to 9 pm on every day during January 6-12, he said.