32 SOCIAL SCIEN1TST
Initially it was under the supervision of a management committee, but in 1973 the state government took it over and entrusted its management to a board of administrators.
u The figure was upto 1978. The number of 'Tantuja' sales depots have progressively increased during the subsequent years.
15 The procurement of cloth is done by paying 60 percent of cloth price in yarn and 40 percent in cash.
16 Intensive Development Project Report, Directorate of Handloom and Textiles, Cottage and mall-Scale Industries Department, Government of West Bengal, pp 1-2.
17 Paschim Banger Tant Shilpa, 1977.
^ Ibid.
19 Report on Export Production Project, Government of West Bengal, 1976, p 1. The total expenditure of the project has been fixed at Rs 40 lakhs to be paid as 75 percent loan and 25% percent grant by the Central Government.
s[o The project is to be linked up with some cstablislicd export houses like the All India Handloom Fabrics Marketing Society Limited or the Handloom and Handicraft Export Corporation of India Limited or any other private trading agency that will take the bulk of the production for sale through their own channel for export.
31 As a corollary to the emphasis on technological improvement in the handloom sector, (he state government has taken up a scheme for promoting semi-automatic looms, especially to enhance the production of cloth upto 60s by 50 percent. With a view to providing an impetus for weaving novel designs as well as varied products, cash prizes are awarded to the artisans and designers and certificates of merit are distributed on the basis of district and state level competitions.
22 Paschim Banger Tant Shilpa, op cit, 1978. Each preliminary training centre trains 65 weavers in a year with a stipend of Rs 20 per month to each trainee, and advance training centres train 24 trainees a year with Rs 50 as stipend per trainee per month.