USE OF POWER LOOMS IN KASHMIR SHAWL INDUSTRY

Kashmir is well known for its traditional shawl weaving business. Pashmina is a light weight, very warm and delicate fiber in Kashmir it is always weaved on handlooms that why the pashmina shawl is so expansive. But presently the shawl industry of Kashmir faced so many problems like fake products, decreased market, low income, and low quality, the objective of the study is to find the problems and the efforts to save the industry made by government. Kashmir shawls are known for its delicacy and warmth, these pashmina shawls are made from pashmina or cashmere fiber. Pashmina fiber is very light weight and soft that it only treated manually. In last few years it seems that many shawl industry used power looms for making pashmina shawls. And sold them on low price while pashmina shawl is one of the most expansive shawls of the world. According to that point, the lower rate traded shawl must be gives a wrong signal. Pashmina shawl business is at risk today because of sales of fake shawl in the name pashmina momentum in the market. Fake pashmina is primarily made out of Kashmir but the trade of fake pashmina increased rapidly has occurred, now Kashmiri businessman engaged in this work too. Because fake Pashmina reduce costs and has improve benefits even at the half price of original Pashmina. Director of craft development institute, Mr. Moh. Sharik faroqki said that most people dose not identify the original one. And all that surprisingly increase the confusion between original and fake pashmina market.