Srinagar: Facing complaints from buyers and tourists that carpet sellers are selling machine-made carpets from outside as Kashmiri handmade carpets, the Jammu and Kashmir government has cracked a whip on carpet sellers and confiscated fake products.
The government has warned the traders against such malpractices and has also started raiding traders. Several showrooms were raided by the Central Inspection Squad from the Quality Control wing of the Handicrafts and Handloom Department in Srinagar and tourist destinations of Gulmarg and Pahalgam which see a rush of tourists.
Sources said that some carpet sellers are selling machine-made Turkish carpets to tourists and other buyers as Kashmiri hand-knotted carpets.
“We received several complaints from tourists and other buyers. These sellers bring a bad name to the rich heritage of Kashmir,” the spokesperson said.
Sheikh Ashiq, a prominent Kashmiri carpet exporter, said that it has become a menace in India that machine-made carpets are being sold in the name of handmade carpets in handicrafts showrooms.
“It needs prompt action from concerned authorities. One carpet is made by a family for over a minimum of six to eight months and the same size machine is produced in minutes. Kashmiri carpets often feature intricate 18 x 18 or 20 x 20 knots, which is pure tradition and mastery of craftsmanship,” he told ETV Bharat.
Ashiq, who headed the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the Valley, said that the traders must not sell machine-made carpets in the name of Kashmir handmade carpets.
The spokesperson said that the government is invoking Tourist Trade and Quality Control Acts, and taking strict action against those sellers which sell machine-made and unlabelled carpets as Kashmiri handmade knotted carpets.
Two years ago the Handicrafts and Handloom Department started GI tagging of carpets and other handicraft products of Kashmir so that the buyers can scan the product and recognise the real handmade products.
The government has asked the stakeholders to approach the Handicrafts & Handloom Department for GI tagging, testing and certification of their products at CDI & IICT to promote the sale of exquisite hand-made products.
“Inspections of showrooms have been intensified in the Srinagar city, in health resorts of Gulmarg and Pahalgam, besides other locations to crack down on traders engaged in the sale of counterfeit products, branded as hand-made Kashmir art,” he said.
