July 24, 2019
Bangla to apply for GI tag for muslin fabric
The West Bengal Khadi and Village Industries Board (WBKVIB) will soon apply for geographical indication (GI) for Bangla’s famed fabric, muslin. The work for preparing the documentation, necessary for making the application, for establishing the centuries-old history of the golden fabric in the best possible way, is in its final stages.
It may be mentioned that in Bangla there are primarily seven districts which can be identified as major pockets of muslin – Murshidabad, Birbhum, Nadia, Purba Bardhaman, Malda, Hooghly and Paschim Medinipur. The number of families involved is around 900 to 1,100.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took up muslin as part of her effort to revive the old glory of Bangla in handlooms, handicrafts, crafts, food, etc. With her encouragement, the State MSME Department started Project Muslin in July 2015 to revive and rejuvenate this fabric and through this, preserve the craftsmanship of the traditional skilled artisans, which was on the verge of disappearing.
Another aspect of the revival of muslin by the State Government is developing the Muslin Tourism Circuit (MTC) at three places with the aim of taking foreign tourists to these places and making them witness the manufacturing of muslin fabric with their own eyes. The three places are Baharampur in Murshidabad district and Akalpoush and Sasinara villages in Purba Bardhaman.
Source: Millennium Post
