Handloom units in Pabna are facing closure as weavers are now left with little money to run them during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Weavers say they have not been able to sell their woven clothes at fair prices during the pandemic. Moreover, prices of raw materials have risen astronomically by this time.
According to them, around 10,000 labourers have lost their jobs at some 3,000 handloom units in the district.
They seek government patronage to save the industry.
A weaver from Bera, Alim Uddin says low marker prices of their woven clothes have left them with little money to run the handloom units.
A total 20 per cent of handloom units had closed down, which he blames on importing clothes from India.
Price hikes of raw materials have forced weavers to sit idle now as they don’t afford to buy them at higher prices, says Kamrul Anam Ripon, president of Jatiya Shilpo Samitee of Rajshahi and Rangpur Division.
