The Kerala Government will actively mulling over setting up small garment production units at the panchayat level to help women artisans, who have good expertise either by tradition or by six-months long intensive training provided by the Kerala Artisans Development Corporation (Kadco) in textile ornamentation.

Industries and IT Minister P K Kunhalikutty at an interactive session with the trainee women and garment industrialists, organised by the Kadco on Friday said that the government is ready to provide the necessary infrastructure for setting up such centres in Thrissur and Ernakulam. All what they need is customers for their products. Kunhalikutty launched a promotional video of the Kadco on the occasion.

Public Works Minister V K Ebrahim Kunju; Industries and Commerce director P M Francis; Joy N R, chief of Industry and Infrastructure; K P Noufal, principal of the Institute of Fashion Technology; designer Shalini James and clinical psychologist Dr Zaileshia were also present at the interactive session.

Leading textile groups, including Jolly Silks, Chakolas and Kalyan Silks, extended support to the women at the interactive session, which was hosted by the Institute for Entrepreneurship Development at Kalamassery.

Kerala lags behind the other states in the production of fancy and ornamented garments, which are of high demand, partly due to lack of skilled workers. The training programmes conducted by the Kadco are a key step forward in addressing the skill-gap.

Kadco chairman K Purushothaman said that until five months ago, most of the women participants of the Corporation’s training programmes were confined to domestic duties. Today they are designers and artists whose works can compete with the best in the textile industry.

The Corporation’s project of providing training to women in textile ornamentation aims at reducing the dependence of Kerala’s textile manufacturing sector on professionals from the other states, for design, ornamentation, and embroidery.