Handlooms to Livelihoods: Cairn Supports Assam’s Women-Led Revival
Newzdaddy Business Updates
Cairn empowers rural women through weaving and supports Assam’s handloom revival
India’s handloom tale is now about economic resiliency, women’s empowerment, and local creativity, ten years after National Handloom Day was originally established. The very women who have carried on the weaving tradition for generations are spearheading this change in Assam, where it has long been woven into the social and cultural fabric.
In his July 27 Mann Ki Baat speech, Hon. Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed the history of India’s handloom industry and characterised it as a representation of women-led advancement, cultural pride, and independence. The grassroots efforts being made in Assam, where weaving has long been more than just a craft—it’s a way of life—give embodiment to this idea.
As part of its inclusive development initiatives in the area, Cairn Oil & Gas, Vedanta Ltd., has been striving to enhance Assam’s handloom ecology, echoing the ambition of the Hon’ble PM.
On the ground, Cairn Oil & Gas, Vedanta Ltd. has been helping Assamese rural women transform their abilities into long-term sources of income. In villages like Borchapori (Golaghat) and Agchamua (Jorhat), Cairn is assisting in opening up new options for women through specialised handloom centres established in collaboration with the Assam State Rural Livelihoods Mission (ASRLM).
A movement headed by the community has emerged from what started off as a little initiative in Borchapori. Currently, more than 3,000 women work through self-help groups to produce traditional gamusas, which the Assamese government buys under the Swanirbhar Naari program. This ecosystem is anticipated to be further strengthened by the recently opened centre in Agchamua, which will provide roughly 300 additional women with training, infrastructure, and employment prospects.
This project demonstrates Cairn’s larger dedication to inclusive development, making sure that economic advancement is not only long-lasting but also firmly anchored in regional reality. The handloom centres are places of learning, cooperation, and change where women lead, create, and develop; they are more than just production facilities.
As India commemorates ten years of National Handloom Day, Cairn is united with the Assamese women who are weaving not only fabric but futures full of pride, dignity, and purpose.