Sanganer, the suburban hub of the hand-block printed textile industry near Jaipur, is shorn of its usual vibrancy and colour. Exporters of the prized Sanganeri textile say altered consumption patterns and diminished purchasing power in their primary markets the US and Western Europe will continue to hurt their livelihoods long after the lockdown is lifted.
Countries, such as the US, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, France and Italy most of which are among the worst affected by the Covid-19 pandemic accounted for 30 per cent of the overall export of hand-printed textiles from India in 2018-19, states the data released by Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts.
The sector was trying to emerge from the aftereffects of the implementation of GST when the pandemic struck. In the financial year 2018-19, exports had dipped 36 per cent year-on-year in the aforementioned countries because of the implementation of GST, said officials of Jaipur-based Federation of Rajasthan Handicraft Exporters (Forhex).