MSME Ministry approves KVIC proposal for 36% artisan wage increase

By

Isabelle Crossley

Published
Sep 5, 2018

The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Ministry has approved a 36 percent wage increase for Khadi spinners, as requested by the The Khadi and Village Industries Commission.

Wages for Khadi spinners have been officially raised by the MSME Ministry from Rs 5.5 per hank to Rs 7.5 per hank, an increase of over 36 percent. KVIC made a statement on September 4 reporting that its proposal for the wage increase for Khadi spinners along with a government subsidy for them of Modified Market Development Assistance (MMDA) had been approved. The MSME Ministry put the wage increase into effect from August 15, 2018.

With the MMDA programme, 30 percent of costs will be paid by the government to Khadi producing institutions as a production subsidy. Out of this 30 percent, 40 percent will be given to the artisans as wage incentives and the other 60 percent will be given to the Khadi institutions. The wage incentives will be paid by KVIC directly into the artisans’ accounts through a direct transfer.

With the new scheme, “on an average, an artisan spinning minimum 20 hanks in a day will now start earning Rs 202 per day, including his wages and government incentive – after this increase. It may be noted that, most of the artisans spin more than 20 hanks per day presently," said KVIC in its statement. KVIC believes that wage incentives will help to encourage youth into the Khadi spinning profession.