In a move to promote Handlooms, the Ministry of Textiles has undertaken many new initiatives. As many as 10 more Design Resource Centres (DRCs) are in the process of being set up by the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) at Weavers’ Service Centres (WSCs) of Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kannur, Indore, Nagpur, Meerut, Bhagalpur and Panipat with the objective to build and create design-oriented excellence in the handloom sector and facilitate weavers, exporters, manufacturers and designers access design repositories for sample/product improvisation and development.
The Ministry has roped in NIFT keeping in view the fact that it is an in-house organisation of MoT, of which handloom also is a part, and the expertise of NIFT in fashion and design trends which can be utilised by handloom sector for greater market linkage.
DRCs are being established by NIFT in all WSCs in a phased manner, wherein vast inventory of designs and resources will be available for use by exporters, manufacturers, designers, weavers and other stakeholders.
DRCs have been set up and inaugurated in WSCs of Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bhubaneshwar, Guwahati, Jaipur and Varanasi. The eighth DRC at Kancheepuram was inaugurated by the Minister of Textiles on National Handloom Day on 07 August 2021.