Parliamentary committee finds gaps in handloom corporation

04 Aug '11

3 min read

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Industry has slammed North Eastern Handicrafts and Handlooms Development Corporation (NEHHDC) for high level of misconduct and gaps in its functioning and suggested that the Corporation should consider penetration into newer markets.

NEHHDC was instituted as a Government of India undertaking in 1977 to preserve the interests of poor women engaged in the handloom industry.

The 31-member Parliamentary Committee, chaired by DMK Rajya Sabha MP Tiruchi Siva, in its report submitted to the two Houses on August 2 said that the Corporation was running in losses since its establishment.

While conversing with the NEHHDC officials, the Committee observed that they were hesitant in answering the queries posed by the Committee members and even failed to give any satisfactory replies or provide explanations about the points highlighted by the members, the report stated.

“Thus, the Committee is inclined to deduce that there are major lapses in management and apathy in carrying out the functioning of the Corporation,” it added.

The report stated that in December 2009 the Corporation was referred to the Board for Reconstruction of Public Sector Enterprises (BRPSE) with a turnaround package.

The BRPSE suggested that NEHHDC should be liquidated in its existing form and converted from a commercial body to a promotional entity.

The Committee said that the Corporation has not been reoriented in spite of the BRPSE's recommendation of converting it into a promotional entity.

The report further stated that all the concerned parties need to seriously consider revitalizing the key organisation which was instituted with an intention to exploit the huge potential that the North eastern region's handloom and handicrafts industry possessed.

The report suggested that the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (MDoNER) should provide complete budgetary support to the Corporation till its revival and restructuring is complete.

The Committee, while backing the recommendations for enhancing NEHHDC's efficiency, stated that the high interests on the Corporation's loans should be written off as first step to help it revive from the existing miserable condition.

The report firmly proposed that instead of taking the Corporation into liquidation, it must be given a fair chance to revive and streamline itself with all possible support from the MDoNER, so as to make it business oriented and competitive.

The report stated that though the Corporation's net worth has always remained negative, its sales and gross trading profits showed an upward trend during the three year's duration from 2007-08 to 2009-10.

It mentioned that the NEHHDC was to a greater extent inactive in grasping the current trend amongst the youngsters and the middle class, who now have a revitalized interest in handlooms and handicrafts.

The Committeeadvised that the NEHHDC and the MDoNER should strategise for penetration into newer markets, particularly in the eastern region of the country.

It finally suggested that a check should be maintained on all the acts of the management of NEHHDC and it must be made liable for all its acts of commission and omission.

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