News Highlight
Traders of Pashmina shawls complain that “obsolete testing methods” have resulted in many of their export consignments being flagged by customs authorities.
Key Takeaway
- The traders claim that the authorities’ use of obsolete techniques such as “light microscopy” has resulted in several cases of “false positives”, leading to their wrongful prosecution.
Pashmina shawls
- About
- Pashmina Shawls are a fine variant of shawls spun from cashmere wools.
- Cashmere wool is obtained from the Changthangi goat native to the high plateau of Ladakh.
- Traditional producers of pashmina wool are people known as the Changpa.
- History
- Pashmina shawls gained much prominence in the days of the Mughal Empire as objects of rank and nobility.
- GI Tag
- Kashmir Pashmina has been assigned a Geographical indication (GI) tag under the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act of 1999.
- BIS Certification
- In 2019, the Bureau of India Standards (BIS) published an Indian standard for identification, marking and labelling the Pashmina Shawls for their purity.
- Significance of the BIS certification
- The certification will help curb the adulteration of Pashmina.
- Protect the interests of local artisans and nomads who produce Pashmina raw materials.
- Assure the purity of Pashmina for customers.
Changthangi or Pashmina goat
- About
- It is a special goat breed indigenous to the high-altitude regions of Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir.
- They are raised from ultra-fine cashmere wool, known as Pashmina, once woven.
- Significance
- These goats are generally domesticated and reared by nomadic communities called the Changpa in the Changthang region of Greater Ladakh.
- The Changthangi goats have revitalised the economy of Changthang, Leh and Ladakh regions.
Shahtoosh shawls
- About
- It is the fine undercoat fibre obtained from the Tibetan antelope, known locally as chiru.
- Chiru
- Chiru is a species living mainly in the northern parts of the Changthang Plateau in Tibet.
- Near Threatened in IUCN Red List.
- It has been enlisted in Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act, of 1972.
Content Source: The Hindu