The Hindu Business Line : Alternative jobs for Shahtoosh shawl workers urged

THE Wildlife Trust of India and the International Fund for Animal Welfare have recommended to the Government that an `appellation of origin' for the unique weaving skills of the artisans of the Kashmir valley be created under the new patents law.

This, they feel, will help the community produce an exclusive handcrafted product that will command higher prices and also provide employment to those all segments of workers and weavers, who were previously involved in the production of the Shahtoosh shawls.

In the past, artisans and weavers engaged in the production of Kashmir's famous product, the Shahtoosh shawl, have been hit by the international ban on its manufacture and sale.

To provide the Shahtoosh workers, almost 15,000 in number, alternative employment, the two environment organisations have suggested that a recently notified Indian patents legislation be evoked. The new legislation, the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, that came into force on September 15, introduced, for the first time in India, registration and better protection of geographical indications in relation to products. The environment agencies suggest that Kashmir's famed Pashmina shawl could be the key to an alternative vocation for the Shahtoosh workers. These workers lost their legal livelihood in the 1970s when the Tibetan antelope, Chiru, was brought under Schedule 1 in wildlife protection and a direct link was established between the manufacture and sale of the Shahtoosh shawl and the animal's survival.

The two organisations conducted an extensive survey among 45,000 people in the Valley to ascertain the number of workers affected by the ban, and found that out of the at least 15,000 people were engaged in its production, the majority were women.

The survey titled `Beyond the Ban: A Census of Shahtoosh Workers in Jammu & Kashmir', revealed that 93 per cent of Shahtoosh workers were concentrated in and around downtown Srinagar and 74 per cent of those surveyed were women. Many of them were still involved in its illegal manufacture and sale.

"If the Chiru is to be saved, we need to provide viable alternatives to those involved in producing the Shahtoosh shawl and this report suggests just that," said Dr George Schaller of the Wildlife Conservation Society, who initially established the relationship between the Chiru and the Shahtoosh, and was also the one to hand over the report to the Government.

"Any action of this nature needs a strong political will, and I would appeal to the Indian Prime Minister as well as the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir to take this issue seriously not only to help the people, but also to save a beautiful animal that is slaughtered outside its boundaries, for illegal use in India. It is equally important that India, Nepal and China strictly enforce their laws in co-ordination so that it acts as a strong deterrent to those involved in the poaching and the trade," he added.

"The Shahtoosh production process has not evolved beyond a primitive putting out system," Dr Ravindran Gopinath of the London School of Economics, who analysed the data of the census report, said. "It is still a cottage industry with a distinct, and possibly, a unique division of labour, due to which the ban has left stages like the separators and the spinners, the worst hit. More so because mechanisation of Pashmina production has left them with no alternatives to fall back on in any modern production process," he added.

The survey has, therefore, recommended that workers stick to their traditional skills and focus it on Pashmina, which is sold the world over as Kashmir or Cashmere Pashmina. "However, the quality of a handcrafted Pashmina shawl produced in Kashmir, is far superior to any machine-made or partially handcrafted product made anywhere else in the world and strangely enough sold as Kashmir Pashmina. We would, therefore, like to patent the skills of this origin and ensure that it is used for the good of both ex-Shahtoosh and Pashmina workers of the Valley," said Ms Aniruddha Mookerjee of the Wildlife Trust of India, who directed the concept and the report.

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