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1. (i) Khadi fabric has the following positive qualities : Higher fabric porosity i.e. it is most pours, therefore air-permeability more because of lower cover factor, which is in the vicinity of 14 in case of Khadi fabric.
(ii) Less Twist Factor, which allows soaking i.e. sorbancy is improve. Ability to absorb perspiration is more. Thus it is more soothing to wear khadi fabrics in summer.
(iii) Khadi fabric is more ‘fuller’ or more voluminous than mill fabrics, since it is hand-woven and hand-spun as the average yarn diameter in hand-spun yarn is always more than the mill yarn.
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2. Thus, the other fabric parameters like Ends per inch, Picks per inch, warp count and weft count being similar, a khadi fabric would look fuller than mill fabric in general. This is a positive quality, particularly for furnishing fabrics. Making better varieties in mill cloth, there is generally no provision and for getting heavy textures it is to much expensive. Therefore, in furnishing fabric, khadi fabrics, has a natural upper edge.
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| Comparison Of Khadi Sector And Mill Sector |
Khadi fabric production activity is mostly labour intensive. Here human input is supported to be the prime factor whereas in textile-mill, modern technology is rising human potentiality to mechanization and less and less human inputs. Khadi programme rings it’s technology infact at the doorstep of the Khadi Worker, who are mostly in rural areas. The entire reason is to provide employment to the village people at a minimum of investment. It is no wonder khadi programme would provide employment to 1.4 million artisans in rural artisans mainly woman to whom no other avenues of employment is easily available in such interior villages and although the ways are not much, it is quite essential for them.
To make a viable future of the khadi industry, it need to stand on it’s own feet. Phase by phase, switch over from obsolete traditional implement i.e. power driven 24 spindle and 48 spindle charkhas with a composite production unit of khadi is suggested. It would not be seen simply an instrument for provision of rural employment. Compared to Gandhiji’s period, where no other rural employment was available in the villages, now different forms of rural earning are available in villages, so only where production of khadi textiles is economically viable, local raw-materials are available, local skills for producing good quality khadi cloth is available, khadi production centers may be established and employment would follow :
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| A Comparison Of Mill Sector And Khadi Sector |
| Sr. No. |
Item |
Mill Sector |
Khadi Sector |
Khadi as % of Mill |
| 1. |
Spindle installed |
28.09 million |
1.86 million |
6.6 |
| 2. |
Yarn production (cotton) |
15230 lakh kgs. |
211 lakh kgs. |
1.4 |
| 3. |
Employment |
10.02 lakh persons |
14.50 lakh persons
0.43 lakh persons (Polyvastra)
14.93 Khadi & Polyvastra
|
146.4 |
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| Fabric Production (Million Sq. Meters) |
| |
Production |
% Shate |
| 1. Mills |
2255 |
9.6 |
| 2. Power loom |
16630 |
70.5 |
| 3. Handloom |
4255 |
18.1 |
| 4. Khadi including polyvastra |
117 |
0.5 |
| 5. Other – woolen, silk etc. |
310 |
1.3 |
| Total - |
23567 |
100.0 |
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| Sr. No. |
Item |
All Sector |
Khadi |
Khadi as % Of all sector |
| 1. |
Cotton |
16343 |
89.22 |
0.55 |
| 2. |
Woolen |
109 |
10.61 |
9.73 |
| 3. |
Silk |
211 |
5.43 |
2.57 |
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| Source : |
| Annual Administration Report of Textile Ministry. |
| Basic facts of Textile Industry published by office of Textile Commission. |
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