The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley, while presenting the General Budget 2014-15 in Lok Sabha today, has proposed to provide ₹ 50 crore to set-up a Trade Facilitation Centre and a Crafts Museum to develop and promote handloom products and carry forward the rich tradition of handlooms of Varanasi.

The Finance Minister has announced to set-up eight Textile Mega Clusters at Varanasi, Bareily, Lucknow, Surat, Kuttch, Bhagalpur, Mysore and one in Tamil Nadu with a sum of ₹ 200 crore.

The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley proposed to set-up a Hastkala Academy for the preservation, revival and documentation of the handloom/handicraft sector in PPP mode in Delhi with a sum of ₹ 30 crore. He also proposed to start a Pashmina Promotion Programme (P-3) and a programme for the development of other crafts of Jammu & Kashmir with a sum of ₹ 50 crore.
 

  Textile and handloom development: budgeted support to establish facilitation centres, clusters, academy and promotion programmes. Central support funds establishment of a Trade Facilitation Centre and Crafts Museum in Varanasi to promote handloom products, funding for multiple Textile Mega Clusters to enhance cluster development and market access, creation of a Hastkala Academy in PPP mode for preservation and documentation of handloom/handicraft skills, and targeted promotion programmes including a Pashmina Promotion Programme and regional crafts development initiatives.