BY Swapana Tarafdar
NEW DELHI: After cafés, fast-food outlets and even libraries took to the roads, a new kind of caravan is now making its way across Delhi-NCR—bringing India’s rich handloom and handicraft traditions directly to consumers.
Called “Haat on Wheels,” the initiative of the Ministry of Textiles has been travelling across Delhi-NCR for nearly a year, showcasing and selling handloom products from different parts of the country.
Designed as a fully equipped mobile showroom, the customised van offers a wide range of products, including sarees, stoles, dupattas, scarves, cotton yoga mats, honeycomb and bamboo towels, bedsheets, cushions, kitchen aprons, linen shirt fabric, ready-made cotton shirts and suits. The collection comes in a variety of colours, designs and traditional styles.
But the caravan is not just about shopping. It also aims to connect consumers with India’s weaving traditions, create awareness about indigenous crafts and encourage people to support local artisans and sustainable handloom products. The initiative seeks to bridge the gap between traditional weavers and retail markets, giving artisans greater visibility and a direct platform to showcase their creations to consumers.
The National Handloom Development Corporation (NHDC) supports the handloom sector through raw-material supply, marketing assistance, training, implementation of government schemes and promotion of handloom products through fairs and exhibitions. With its showroom-on-wheels concept, Haat on Wheels is taking India’s handloom story beyond traditional markets—one neighbourhood at a time.
