Chennai, Aug 10
Tamil Nadu Federation of Power looms Associations on Saturday called for a shutdown against the use of polyester texturised yarn in the production of sarees during Pongal.
The federation also demanded that only cotton yarn should be used in the production of sarees during the festival season.
"The strike will start at 6 am and end at 6 pm on August 12. Our members would also observe a fast from 9 am to 5 pm near Veerappanchatiram bus stop in Erode," said the federation.
On August 8, the Tamil Nadu Handloom Department invited e-tenders for the purchase of 4,306 tonnes of dyed polyester yarn, 2,960 tonnes of dyed polyester, 2,291 tonnes of grey polyester, and 358 tonnes of TPM dyed polyester.
"Tamil Nadu's existing sizing process - done to prepare the yarn for weaving - is unsuitable for polyester yarn," the federation said.
Federation President L.K.M Suresh said the sarees for free distribution were produced every year using warping machines that prepared longitudinal threads
He said that while warping machines were readily available in the state however polyester yarn would require sizing machines, which are scarce in the state.
"If a production order is issued to the societies using polyester yarn, only a very few units could produce the sarees while most of the units would remain idle," L.K.M Suresh wrote in an email to Chief Minister M.K Stalin.
He also informed the Chief Minister that if the production is stopped, thousands of workers would lose their livelihood, forcing the government to procure sarees from other states.
Pongal, the Tamil New Year, falls in the middle of January every year and is the biggest festival in the state. The iconic Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and matinee idol M.G. Ramachandran (MGR) envisaged the free dhoti and saree scheme which was inaugurated in 1981.
The idea was to provide employment to the weavers of the power loom, handloom and pedal loom.
In 2024, 1.73 crore sarees and 1.68 crore dhoti were produced for distribution among the public with the Pongal gift hampers.
Out of this, 1.4 crore dhotis and 1.4 crore sarees were allocated for power looms and the remaining dhoti and sarees were reserved for handlooms and pedal looms.