Handloom Export Promotion Council
(HEPC) is a statutory body constituted under The Ministry
of Textiles, Government of India to promote the exports
of all handloom products like fabrics, home furnishings,
carpets and floor coverings, etc. HEPC was constituted in
the year of 1965 with 65 members and its present membership
is around 2000 spread all over the country. The Handloom
industry mainly exports fabrics, bed linen, table linen,
toilet and kitchen linen, towels, curtains, cushions and
pads, tapestries and upholstery's, carpets and floor coverings,
etc. The basic objective of HEPC is to provide all support
and guidance to the Indian Handloom exporters and International
buyers for trade promotion and International marketing.
HEPC has its head office at Chennai and regional offices
at New Delhi.
HEPC is incorporated as a non profit making
company under section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956 and
governed by the Memorandum and Articles of Association framed
by the Council. It is administered by an Executive Committee
consisting of elected representatives from the export trade,
exofficio members and nominated Government officials. The
Committee is headed by Chairman. The Chairman and Vice Chairman
hold office for a period of two years. The secretary (Executive
Director) of the Council, an IAS cadre officer appointed
by the Government, assists the Council to run the administration.
Organizing participation
in trade fairs, exhibitions and buyer-seller meets in
India and Abroad.
Providing guidance,
consultancy and support to handloom exporters to promote
handloom exports.
Conducting propaganda
regularly and popularise Indian Handloom products abroad
though various means of publicity.
Collect, collate
and disseminate trade data and commercial intelligence
to exporters.
Facilitate the upgrading,
popularisation and adoption of technology, quality and
design improvement, standards and specifications, product
development, diversification and innovations, etc.
Undertaking market
studies in individual foreign countries.
Sending trade missions
to the foreign countries.
Bringing out useful
publications like colour catalogue, colour trends catalogue,
importers and exporters directories etc.
Laying down standards
of quality and packaging in respect of Indian Handlooms
for export.
Approving agents,
representatives or correspondence in foreign markets
for continuously and regularly reporting the price,
market preferences and reception accorded to Indian
Handloom products.
Undertaking or assisting
in research on schemes of technological nature designed
to improve the efficiency of the handloom sector.
To advise the Government,
local authorities and public bodies on the policies
adopted by them in relation to their effect on industry
or commerce and other measure including direct and indirect
taxations in so far as such policies or measure having
a bearing directly or otherwise on export of Indian
Handloom products
Inquiring and investigating
into complaints received from foreign buyers or Indian exporters
and act as arbitrators if asked for it.
Arrange for the participation of member exporters in
the important trade fairs, organising buyer-seller meet
(BSM), business missions.
Provide
financial grants to the exporters with market development
assistance for under taking sale-cum- study tours, participation
in international fairs, publicity etc.
Popularise
Indian Handloom products abroad through website publicity,
advertisements in commercial portals, trade magazines,
conducting exclusive hand woven shows, and through Council
publications.
Dissemination
of trade information like market studies, colour trends,
design trends, export trends, standards and specifications,
Government policies, circulars etc. through publications
and news letters.
Conducting
workshops, seminars on upgrading technology in pre-loom,
loom, post loom practices to improve quality and productivity,
popularising modern dyeing practices, product innovations,
diversifications and improvement, quality compliance,
better merchandising practices, packaging methods and
so on to improve the competitiveness of Indian Handloom
products.
Promote
product innovation, diversification and improvement
in the selected handloom clusters under Development
of Exportable Products and Marketing scheme (DEPM) for
promoting the production of exportable products.
Providing
design support to develop new designs, fabric simulation
colour printouts, peg plan graph outputs, layout information
and computer aided colour matching etc. to the exporters.
Generating
and dissemination of trade enquiries for facilitating
International buyers to source the handloom products
from Indian Handloom exporters.
Liaison
with Government for strengthening infrastructure facilities
in handloom export production centres, take efforts
to improve forward and backward linkages in handloom
sector.
Serve
as a link between trade and Government to formulate
appropriate policies to promote handloom export growth.
Inquiries
into the complaints made against exporters and take
up the exporter's problems related to the buyers with
respective embassies
