First it was the plantation growers. Then came the sugarcane growers. And now, it is the turn of the handloom weavers to get a ‘‘one-time’’ fiscal concession from the Centre. Barely months before the general elections, the BJP government plans to loosen its purse strings to give a cash grant to handloom weavers for textile already sold in previous years.The Centre will re-imburse to the handloom agencies — usually weaver cooperatives — 10 per cent of the sales notched in 2002-03 and 2003-04. The one-time outgo from the national exchequer to the weavers would be nearly Rs 100 crores, sources said.The proposal, moved by the Textile Ministry, also stipulates a phase-out of the scheme of giving discounts on handloom textiles to consumers. The proposal will come up for Cabinet approval on Thursday.Last year, the Centre gave a one-time grant to rubber plantations to compensate for the declining international prices. It was then followed up with soft loan to states to pay the outstandings owed to sugarcane farmers.
