Virudhunagar, near Madurai in Tamil Nadu is to house one of the handloom clusters which was announced in the Union Budget 2009, said Union Minister for Textiles Dayanidhi Maran.
Speaking to reporters during the Silver Jubilee Exports Award Function of Handloom Export Promotion Council (HEPC), Maran said that the centre government will allocate Rs 70 crore for the cluster, which will provide direct and indirect employment for about 50, 000 people. The Handloom cluster in West Bengal will also get the same amount of funds though the location is yet to be identified by the state, he added.
This cluster will be one of the five integrated Handoom Parks that will be set up in the state with an outlay of Rs 475 crore, added Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister M K Stalin. Around 25, 000 weavers are already working in and around Madurai and hence the place was chosen, he added.
Apart from the handloom clusters, the state has also allocated Rs 25 crore to start training on modern designs and technologies for weavers through the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Chennai.
Speaking on marine discharge project to be implemented for the effluents from dyeing units, Stalin said the state has made a layout of Rs 900 crore for the project, especially for the units in Erode, Kumarapalayam and Karur. A meeting with the Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh will be held tomorrow in New Delhi, where the funding pattern will be discussed.
The state already has Common Effluent Treatments Plants (CETP) at place and has achieved Zero Effluent Discharge, he said. A special purpose vehicle (SPV) called Textile Eco Solutions Tamil Nadu has also been formed for implementing the project.