(GIST OF YOJANA) KHADI THE ICON OF INDIAN INDEPENDENCE

(MAY-2024)

KHADI THE ICON OF INDIAN INDEPENDENCE

Context:

The Champaran Satyagraha in 1917, that Gandhiji encountered the plight of the farmers of Bihar. He met a woman in the Bhilwara village and it was during his discussion with her that he realized that she was unable to change her sari simply because she did not have another one. The plant which is the source of indigo dye for clothing was the central issue of the Champaran Satyagraha and the same cloth was a costly commodity for the farmers.

Traditional Textile Knowledge

Indian indigo-dyed cotton ikat was found in a Pharaohs tomb, the rose madder cloth was unearthed at a Mohenjo-daro site along with spindles, Greek and Roman traders accounts describe the fine fabrics from the Indian subcontinent.
Ajanta and Ellora paintings depict the various designs and styles in the textile materials. Each and every part of India had its own style of textile design - design while weaving, dyeing, printing, etc.
The quality of the cloth also varied from region to region. In fact, we have pioneered in the art of textile technology.

Khadi Movement

As suggested by Gokhale, Gandhi toured India to have hands-on experience with the conditions of the Indian people. He saw face-to-face the poor conditions of the villages. The farmers were out of employment for almost half the year.
The Champaran incident also intensified his feelings and he wanted to identify a supplementary occupation for the farmers that would help utilise their time and energy for gainful employment. Spinning and weaving came to his mind.
He introduced weaving in the Ashram with the support of the textile mill owners of Ahmedabad. He soon realised that this process again supported the Indian industries and did not directly benefit the farmers.
Gandhi met an energetic lady, Gangabehn Majumdar at the Second Gujarat Education Conference in Broach, and entrusted her with the work of finding out the traditional way of spinning and its instruments. That was the situation in India!

Khadi Economics

Khadi Movement also paved the way for the empowerment of the villagers, especially women. One of the major reasons for the large number of womens participation in the Indian freedom movement was certainly the Khadi Movement.

Icon of Independence

Charkha became the icon of the independence movement and khadi became the identity of nationalism. India witnessed a major shift from colonial power to peoples power. Common people once feared policemen in this country but with Gandhis introduction of a non-violent strategy, policemen feared khadi people. Purely an economic activity became a powerful political weapon.

Conclusion

Cotton is environmentally friendly, suitable for our weather conditions, good for skin and body, and a natural product. It applies to all cotton products including mill-made. But the testing stone will be the production, distribution, and consumption. For khadi, the production itself will be eco-friendly with appropriate technology to suit the producer. The decentralised production will also help in the distribution of income to the masses through which we can increase the purchasing power of the people.