SRINAGAR: Smiles are back as Kashmir handicraft exports have crossed last fiscal’s record in just three quarters of the current financial year.
Official figures reveal that goods worth Rs 728.99 were exported in the three quarters ending December 2022. Exports of all four quarters of 2021-22 were Rs 563.13 crore.
Most of the exports were realized in the third quarter. Figures released by the Department of Handcrafts and Handlooms reveal goods worth Rs 352.02 were exported in the third quarter. Of which carpets worth Rs 121.15 crore were exported to different countries.
Likewise, shawls worth Rs 114.17 crore, paper machie Rs 1.76, crewel/chain stitch Rs 113.23 crore, and wood carving Rs 2.71 crore were exported from October to December 2022.
Official figures reveal that handcrafts worth Rs 375.97 crore have been exported from April- September 2022. Of which shawls and rumals worth Rs 186.45 crore were exported to different countries. It was followed by carpets with exports touching Rs 91.08 crore.
Likewise paper machie worth Rs 3.38 crore; chain stitch, and crewel worth Rs 65.13 crore, and wood carving worth Rs 1.75 crore were exported in the last two quarters. Other handcraft products worth Rs 28.18 crore were also exported during that period.
In 2021-22, handicrafts products worth 563.13 crore were exported to different markets. Carpets topped the list with exports touching Rs 251.06 crore. It was followed by shawls and rumals with exports touching Rs 165.98 crore.
Likewise, paper machie worth Rs 13.25 crore, chain stitch and crewel worth Rs 79.56 crore, and wood carving worth Rs 4.20 crore were exported in the last two quarters. Other handcraft products worth Rs 49.08 crore were also exported in the last fiscal.
Exports had taken a hit after the COVID pandemic. It is for the first time post-COVID that exports are on an upward trajectory.
“It is quite heartening to see that despite the global recession and the Ukraine war, our exports are showing an upswing. There are no targets, but our exports are growing,” Mehmood A Shah, director of handicrafts and handlooms, told The Kashmir Monitor.
Usually, 50 percent of handcraft exports comprise carpets because of their huge demand in the international market. “The trend is that carpets account for a 50 percent increase. Nearly 40 percent exports comprise of shawls. Crewel and woodcarving comprise the rest 10 percent,” he said.
Last year, the brand Kashmir soared high when famed Pashmina shawls were gifted to thousands of VIP guests during the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The GI tagging of carpets has also helped to push exports. Official figures reveal that more than 6000 Kashmir silken carpets have been GI-tagged in the last one year to boost exports. The QR code-based Geographic Indication (GI) label has been launched as part of efforts to check the cheating and misbranding that has badly dented the carpet industry of Kashmir.
