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(New page: == What is Malkha ? == Malkha is a cloth made directly from raw cotton through gentle processing, avoiding the damaging processes of baling and unbaling by heavy machinery. It is a proce...) |
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== Cotton Farming in India == | == Cotton Farming in India == | ||
| + | Almost all cotton is grown by small-holder farming families, on small farms of under five acres. Today these farmers are caught in the trap of high input costs, because they have to grow the kind of cotton that modern machinery needs. Modern machinery needs longer and stronger staple to withstand the increasing rigours of high speed processing, but the American cotton that produces the longer staple does not necessarily produce the best cloth. Traditional Indian cotton varieties on the other hand were valued for the kind of cloth that was made from them- durable, soft, absorbent, with excellent draping and colour holding qualities. Traditional Indian varieties | ||
Revision as of 12:53, 18 March 2009
What is Malkha ?
Malkha is a cloth made directly from raw cotton through gentle processing, avoiding the damaging processes of baling and unbaling by heavy machinery.
It is a process of cotton cloth making combining traditional Indian principles with modern small-scale technology. Malkha is made in small units located in villages close to cotton farms. India has for ages grown cotton and made cotton cloth- cotton textile making has long been India's biggest industry. But today there is a crisis in both cotton farming and in handloom weaving.
Cotton Farming in India
Almost all cotton is grown by small-holder farming families, on small farms of under five acres. Today these farmers are caught in the trap of high input costs, because they have to grow the kind of cotton that modern machinery needs. Modern machinery needs longer and stronger staple to withstand the increasing rigours of high speed processing, but the American cotton that produces the longer staple does not necessarily produce the best cloth. Traditional Indian cotton varieties on the other hand were valued for the kind of cloth that was made from them- durable, soft, absorbent, with excellent draping and colour holding qualities. Traditional Indian varieties
