The Handloom & Textile Employees Union, Manipur, has urged the State Government to recognise the Directorate of Handlooms & Textiles as a technical directorate and withdraw the recently introduced rigid cadre system for appointing its Director.
Addressing media persons at Manipur Press Club, Union president Chingtam Luwang said a memorandum had been submitted to the Chief Minister through the proper channel seeking reconsideration of the government order dated July 6, 2026, relating to the cadre system for the post of Director under the Textiles, Commerce and Industry Department.
The union stated that the Directorate of Handlooms & Textiles was established as an independent entity in January 2017 after being bifurcated from the Directorate of Commerce and Industries to address the specialised needs of the handloom, handicrafts and textile sectors. It argued that the department requires technical leadership because its functions involve textile production, design, processing, quality control, product development, marketing and skill development.
According to the union, Manipur has emerged as the state with the highest concentration of handloom weavers and handicraft artisans in the country, as recorded in the National Handloom Census 2019, owing to the sustained efforts of the department and support from the state government.
The union further stated that technical officers in the department possess professional qualifications in handloom, textile or fashion technology, while senior officers in the handicrafts wing are promoted from technical posts with years of field experience. It maintained that the post of Director should be held by a technically qualified officer with at least 10 to 15 years of domain experience to ensure effective planning, implementation of government schemes and continued growth of the sector.
The memorandum also referred to the recent Textile Summit held on June 23 and 24, organised by the Ministry of Textiles, where emphasis was reportedly laid on strengthening state handloom and textile directorates through experienced technical leadership.
The union appealed to the Chief Minister to declare the Directorate of Handlooms & Textiles a technical department and withdraw the proposed rigid cadre system, stating that such measures are essential for safeguarding the long-term development of Manipur’s handloom, handicrafts and textile industries.
