PM’s appeal pushes khadi sales by 125 percent

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that his appeal to the people to buy more hand-woven cotton fabrics products has led to a rise in sale of khadi products, which witnessed almost 125 percent growth.

Earlier, while unveiling his ‘Make in India’ campaign, Modi had also asked people to buy "at least one khadi product". Following his appeal on his first radio address on October 3, outlets run by state-run Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) witnessed a sudden rise in sales. At KVIC headquarters in Mumbai, officials claim that there has been a substantial rise in the sales after Modi's appeal. Nearly 138 stalls at KVIC headquarters made daily sales worth Rs 7-8 lakh this year. Last year, the average sale was Rs 2-3 lakh.

Initial reports suggest, within 10 days of Modi's call, the Khadi Bhandar at Connaught Place in New Delhi started registering daily sales of around Rs 50 lakh while there has been a definite rise across 7,000 outlets in the country. Data provided by Saurashtra Rachanatmak Samiti (SRS) says that total production of khadi in India increased by 6.45 percent. In value terms, it touched Rs 811.08 crores during 2013-14. Sales gained by 5.82 percent and rose to Rs 1,081.04 crores from previous fiscal's Rs 1,021.56 crores.