Fawzul Kabiir, the owner of GR8 bats is overjoyed after the Central government included the Kashmiri willow bats in the newly revised list of handicrafts.
“It will help our artisans to avail different government schemes”, said Kabiir, who is also the president of Cricket Bat Manufacturers Association of Kashmir.
The Ministry of Textiles issued a revised list of craft categories for the purpose of issuance/ renewal of Pehchan ID cards. The craft categories were classified into 9 main categories and 36 sub categories, covering a total of 455 crafts, practising across the country. The Pehchan scheme, launched in 2016, aimed at providing a new identity to handicraft artisans, ensuring that the benefits of various schemes reach deserving craftsmen.
The willow bat makers of the Kashmir valley have long been advocating for the designation of the Kashmiri willow cricket bats as ‘handicraft’.
“It was a long-standing demand of hundreds of artisans associated with the heritage bat industry”, said Kabiir.
Director Handloom and Handicrafts Kashmir Mehmood Ahmad Shah told businessline that the hand-made bat makers could now be able to avail various incentives offered by the Central government under different schemes. The designated handcraft artisans are benefited from the schemes like National Handicraft Development Programme (NHDP) and Comprehensive Handicrafts Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS).
The industry
The century old Kashmiriwillow bat industry, valued at ₹ 700 crore, provides livelihood to more than 10,000 people across the region.
The industry, comprising over 400 bat manufacturing units, is facing challenges on a host of counts including smuggling of wood clefts from outside Kashmir, lack of seasoning facility and dwindling number of willows trees.
Although the government imposed a blanket ban on transfer of willow clefts from Kashmir, the smuggling continues unabated.
“Over the last few years, the industry suffered badly due to government neglect”, said a bat maker.
He said that the handmade bats are highly valued, but lack of support hindered growth and impacted the livelihood of many artisans.
Push for GI tagging
To preserve the indigenous bat industry, the bat makers are advocating for the GI ( Geographical Indication) tagging.
Shah said that the Jammu and Kashmir government was pushing for the GI tagging, which would help protect the authenticity and uniqueness of the Kashmiri willow bats.