A cluster of 80 villages in Nalgonda district of Telangana state forms Pochampally which has traditional looms whose design is more than a century old. Indian Trust for Rural Heritage and Development (ITRHD) and Dr YSR National Institute of Tourism and Hospitality Management (NITHM) was signed MoU to promote Pochampally in different manners and thereby enhance the livelihood of the weavers.

Though weavers of Pochampally in Telangana attained world class fame for creating wonderful designs and beautiful patterns, but there is very little support offered. To change that, Telangana Tourism is making all-out efforts to promote the unique style of weaving and dying patterns of Pochampally, which has found a place in the tentative list of UNESCO’s world heritage sites.

The proposal was submitted to the UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre by the permanent delegation of India to UNESCO on April 15, 2014, under the ‘Iconic saree weaving clusters of India’ along with Koyyalagudem, a village near Pochampally. Both the places are icons of weaving traditions of Telangana.

As part of the MoU, a documentary is being made on Pochampally village, weaving and traditions for promotional use. It is in the final stages. It documents various facets of the iconic weaving village. CDs of the video will be distributed to tour operators and other stakeholders, said tourism officials associated with the project.

It has also planned to hold a workshop-cum-exhibition in Delhi on Pochampally textiles some time in October where weavers from Pochampally will not only explain their craft but also display their ware. In fact, Pochampally saree received intellectual property rights protection or geographical indication (GI) status in 2005.

In the third phase of the MoU, different tour packages to Pochampally and surroundings will be designed and introduced for giving the much-needed exposure to the place and at the same time provide a glimpse to the tourists about the rich heritage of Telangana.

They will ensure tour packages are designed in such a manner that the visitor will get to know the cultural roots, traditions of the place, which is also famous for its association with Acharya Vinobha Bhave and Bhoodan movement.

Today, it is more of a cottage industry and home to more than 10,000 weavers’ families and famous for Pochampally saree. In Pochampally village, the Ikat weaving is called as chit-ku. In this type of weaving the warp, weft or both are tie-dyed before weaving to create designs on the finished fabric. The earlier Pochampalli Ikat sarees show designs closer to the Siddipet khans (a design pattern) rather than the Ikat rumals (a design pattern) and it has much to offer for tourists.