Pashmina gets its wool's worth

You’ve got to hand it to technology. It is now proving handy in preserving the exclusivity of the famed handmade Kashmiri Pashmina shawls across the globe.

The exquisite Pashmina shawls will carry a secure fusion label (SFL) with an identity (ID) number that can be used by a buyer to check its genuineness anywhere in the world.

The SFL, which will look like any other label, will be fused into a shawl using nanotechnology. Each one will be fed with information about the shawl after it is tested for purity in the state-run laboratory in Srinagar. The SFL’s ID number will be added to main database. When a buyer wishes to check the authenticity of a Pashmina shawl, all that s/he needs to do is cross-check it with the database on a website.

“Shawl-makers can get purity testing done at our Pashmina testing laboratory, which will start running in a month’s time,” says Mohammad Shariq Farooqi, director of Craft Development Institute, Kashmir.

The procedure will be made mandatory for every Pashmina shawl dealer. The move is being taken to rein in the burgeoning trade of counterfeit shawls.

Handicraft are the mainstay of Kashmir’s economy. Official figures reveal that it had exported handicraft worth Rs1,651 crore in 2011-12. Kashmir’s shawls topped the exports list at Rs607.3 crore.

A plain 100% handmade pashmina shawl costs around Rs6,000 at the manufacturing level. Intricate designs and embroidery works can push up the cost to even Rs1 lakh.

@ishfaq72