We are proud citizens of India -today the sixth largest economy in the world in terms of nominal GDP. Much of the economic growth is driven by the MSME sector contributing one-third in the overall GDP of the country. Herein again, major share comes from rural micro enterprises. The rural economy mainly relies on cottage industries like Khadi and handloom sector along with handicraft products manufactured from rural artisans. At a time when the world is grappling with inequality, climate change and resource depletion while in the domain of IT and software, AI is on relentless march gobbling up jobs, Khadi and Village Industries (KVI) can play an important role in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and strengthening the vision of an Atmanirbhar Bharat by enabling employment at differential skill levels, with low resource use locally mitigating migration too. Khadi, Hand spun and Hand woven, has been the Soul of Bharat. The responsible production is resource efficient on energy, water utilising natural fibres. The potential to be the driver of growth is being recognised steadily, albeit, slowly.
Our industry signifies a rich cultural legacy from ancient times, exhibiting a diverse artistic sense with exemplary skill and personal touch of human emotions. Various written treatise pertaining to the Rigveda, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Thalia (by Greek historian Herodotus) and Kautilya have mentioned not only spinning and weaving but also the high quality of silk and cotton. While cotton has been cited in Ramayana and aligned to characteristics of Saint, the spectrum of weaves reflect the rich cultural tapestry. Through Khadi ‘Production by Masses’ using hand spun and hand woven, was utilised by Mahatma Gandhiji to confront Mass production by the Colonialists. The fabric of freedom is becoming aspirational fashion statement today because of its unique characteristics of being natural, comfortable and sustainable. Its handmade character gives it an individuality and hence it does not need to compete with generic production in volumes. The journey of Khadi—from a symbol of swadeshi and freedom to a contemporary fashion and lifestyle choice especially for environmentally aware new generation —demonstrates how tradition can adapt to changing consumer preferences. In fact, Tradition of near source production, which is more sustainable, is by default, intrinsic strength in Khadi ecosystem. In 21st Century, KVIC takes inspiration in our mandate from the clarion call of Hon’ble Prime Minister, “Khadi for Nation, Khadi for Fashion and Khadi for Transformation” while contributing to farm, fibre and market connect.
It has to be noted that Hand spinning is the cardinal differentiator between Khadi and Handlooms. Since Yarn is also done by hand, the labour-intensive nature production enables employment to large section of people. The Khadi institutions, the aggregators of the hand-made hank produced in distributed architecture, have been assisted by Khadi and Village industries over last seven decades. Capacity enhancement through Skilling and up-skilling is being done through KVIC’s departmental and non-departmental training centers. With two-third of the rural population in the country, this sector holds larger significance as it provides ample opportunities for rural entrepreneurs. Such interventions directly advance SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) by creating income-generating opportunities for people at the grassroots. Recent measures, including increases in spinning and weaving wages from April 2025 by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), incremental support to improving working tools, conditions, tools infra, marketing interfaces, further demonstrate the emphasis on improving artisan incomes and making traditional livelihoods attractive and economically sustainable. The aggregate production has reached ~Rs 4000 crore(approx.) with Sales reaching about Rs 8000 crore(approx.) due to constant strengthening of the Khadi and Village industries (VI) Ecosystems over period, especially last one decade.
Marching forward, the comfort fabric has been evolving into new categories and aspirational statements. Its transformation is evident in the emergence of Khadi denim, designer saris and bridal wear, contemporary shirts and trousers, and collections by mainstream brands such as Raymond and Peter England. Centre of Excellence for Khadi (NIFT, Delhi), an initiative between Ministry of MSME and Textiles, has developed 2129 Khadi design collections in the multiple categories of apparels, collections of home-made-ups, featuring prints, weaves, embroidery, and painting, sari designs and continues to enable the Khadi Institutions/ aspirants through CoEK knowledge portal. Our foray into infant wear is inspired by the fact that global infant and baby wear segment is expected to be exceeding $60 billion by 2030 (CAGR between 5-8.1%) and there would be priority to organic cotton, hypoallergenic fabrics and non-toxic manufacturing processes. Navyug Khadi designs reflecting positioning of Brand for 21st Century India, launched at National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy, Pragati Maidan with 710 new products presenting the “New Khadi of New India” in a contemporary and innovative manner along with Khadi Knowledge Portal. A collection of Wellness/Yoga wear ‘Svadha’ has been recently launched on International Yoga Day to attract all age groups from Gen Z to young at heart.
Employment generation in Khadi requires very low investment. The assistance is being provided through schemes viz. Khadi Vikas Yojana, Gramodyog Vikas Yojana, PMEGP enabling KVI institutions/units in providing employment opportunities. The government is giving a major push to revive traditional industries by providing them all the necessary support including financial assistance, working capital facilitation, quality raw material support training, tool-kits, wage compensation, marketing support, promotion of digital payments and social security benefits. As per the evaluation study conducted by EDII, Ahmedabad, in its report submitted in January, 2026, over 75% of artisans across all the schemes reported a measurable increase in income post-intervention and a stable year-round employment was created for artisans who previously depended on seasonal or migratory labour which actually helped in reducing the migration of labour. Artisans trained under food processing, agarbatti, and Honey Mission have diversified into new product categories—such as essential oils, scented candles, or value-added honey derivatives. This diversification has improved resilience against local market fluctuations.
Khadi directly addresses women’s empowerment and hence aligns to Inclusive development. Around 80 percent of around half a million Khadi artisans are women. Female participation was found to be dominating in GVY schemes, particularly in Agarbatti, Handmade Paper, Honey Mission, and Service Industry segments according to the study. Therefore, the engagement of a large number of women in any capacity in this sector has ensured direct remunerations for them, thus empowering them through financial independence and improved self-worth both within and outside of their homes. By enabling women to participate in productive economic activity, Khadi contributes directly to SDG 5 (Gender Equality) while also helping reduce social and economic disparities under SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities).
The handmade industry has a growing global demand and huge export potential which needs to be tapped. With its quantum and varieties of traditional handmade products, India occupies an inevitable place in the world. 85% of the global handloom production occurs here and the ‘intrinsic value’ can be leveraged for ‘higher returns’. Other handloom nations like Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Cambodia and Indonesia manufacture very limited range of products but these are mainly for domestic production. India has the huge potential to cater to the global demand of Khadi and handloom products based on its demographic advantage and diversified cultural heritage. Consumers around the world are showing growing interest in products that are handmade, traceable, natural and environmentally responsible. This presents an opportunity to reposition Khadi and handmade products not merely as traditional goods, but as premium products that embody authenticity, strong backstory of craftsmanship and sustainability. KVIC has got registered as EPC on the Trade portal of Consulate General of India at New York, USA under Ministry of External Affairs. KVIC has initiated registering the progressive KIs with EXIM licenses and also engaging with Consulates in India for exposures to our strengths, which should enable building bridges.
While Khadi has its recognition, the Brand is being protected through registering trade Mark in other countries so that our producers and value chains are protected. Further unique Branding, Geographical Identification (GI) tag has been recently awarded to Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) in respect of Ponduru Khadi which will enhance its value realisation for products of unique cotton and products spun and woven through equally unique process. The inaugural BRICS MSME Forum held in Agra this year exhibited specialized and premium products, including GI-tagged Ponduru Khadi, Bharat Kasturi Cotton, Bengal Muslin and naturally coloured cotton products.
We need to ensure Quality and assurance in our products for enhancing new gen Z customer acquisition, retention and higher value returns for such niche products . Towards this end ,
the department’s Central Sliver Plant (CSP), established nearly three and a half decades ago, are being modernized. Of the five currently operational CSPs, the plants located in Chittaradurga, Karnataka, and Kuttur, Kerala, have completed modernization and are operational. The Sliver plant in Karnataka utilises Solar energy for 50% of the requirement while wind power is being explored to make the production totally environmentally supportive. This approach resonates with SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) by connecting traditional enterprises with design, technology, modern markets and evolving supply chains. Technology Up-gradation of Khadi Institutions’ Production Infrastructure and technology-based Common Facility Centres (CFCs) are proposed to strengthen Village Industries clusters through shared infrastructure and modern processing facilities. KVIC is enabling Traceability solutions across the value chains which should enable integrating IT to tradition and attract new gen interest in the production ecosystem also.
Last but not the least, the cottage industry is eco-friendly in nature being energy efficient, water efficient and use of natural fibres/ colours . Khadi is an eco- friendly fabric with very less carbon footprint and environmentally sustainable. The measurement of this is being studied by premier Institutions (IIT, IIMs) to enable suitably factoring in the product as well as Brand promotion narrative to agile new gen consumer – domestic and international. The focus of the world economies has recently shifted towards taking initiatives with a more pragmatic approach in ensuring development that has social and environmental connotations alongside economic growth. The ethical aspects of materialistic expansion have drawn attention of the policy makers in the wake of alarming environmental concerns, rising inequalities, hunger and poverty and inequitable distribution of resources. The 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development with its 17 goals adopted by World nations in 2015 underline the course of action for achieving the development based on poverty eradication, judicious use of environmental resources, and distributive social justice. KVIC in collaboration with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research-Central Institute for Research on Cotton Technology (ICAR-CIRCOT), is actively exploring initiatives aimed at developing naturally coloured cotton varieties. This approach aligns with eco-friendly practices by minimizing water usage, chemical pollution, and energy consumption associated with traditional dyeing processes. It would be therefore pertinent to give impetus to this sector which has the capacity to provide sustainable livelihood solutions. At a time when the fashion industry is under increasing pressure to address waste, pollution and excessive resource consumption, Khadi offers an alternative philosophy; produce thoughtfully, consume responsibly and value the skill behind every product. In fact, whatever fibre or filament, by nature (eg plastic wrapper) and / or length (eg desi cotton) cannot be converted to Yarn by mechanised spinning industry, can be done through hand charkha and can enable ‘in loop’ as well as ‘ out of loop’ recycling and upcycling and thereby contribute to additional employment categories in hand spinning.
This directly connects Khadi with SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 13 (Climate Action). Sustainable agricultural practices, including responsible cotton cultivation, can further strengthen its contribution to SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG 15 (Life on Land) by promoting more sustainable rural ecosystems. With these potential, constant support and promotion would keep making the supply chains stronger, deeper and wider in delivering responsibly to human society.
The larger message is simple; sustainability, need not always come from the newest technology only. Sometimes, it can emerge from practices that communities have preserved for centuries that modern society is rediscovering. Khadi represents precisely such a possibility. It combines heritage with innovation, employment with entrepreneurship, women’s empowerment with social inclusion, and economic activity with environmental responsibility. We, at KVIC, are trying to uncover, demystify, reassert and reinforce that MAGIC woven by Artists of Threads, our spinners and Artisans, for the environmentally conscious world.
Courtesy PIB, Srinagar
(Ms. Roop Rashi is Chief Executive Officer, KVIC & Dr. Nitesh Dhawan is Dy.CEO, KVIC, Mumbai.)
