The Rug Library

Panipat in Haryana is known as the 'City of Weavers' and is described by its district administration as India’s biggest centre for quality blankets and carpets, with a strong handloom sector.

Panipat’s district administration describes the city as the world’s biggest centre of 'shoddy' yarn, which is spun from shredded used cloth and textile scraps.

Panipat’s handloom output includes durries, carpets, mats, table covers, bed covers and curtains, which the district reports are exported to countries such as Canada, Japan, Germany and Australia.

Panipat’s textile-recycling industry took shape in the 1980s, reportedly when imported virgin wool became unaffordable, and it now turns used garments from abroad into yarn, blankets and other products.

Panipat is often called the 'cast-off capital' of the world because of the scale of its used-textile recycling.

Reporting on Panipat’s recycling units has raised concerns about bleaching chemicals and untreated wastewater affecting groundwater, soil and public health.

Panipat’s recycling cluster was praised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 120th episode of his 'Mann Ki Baat' radio programme as an emerging global textile-recycling hub.

During a meeting with Panipat’s textile industry, Union Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh urged manufacturers to develop new products using different fibre blends.

Panipat’s handloom tradition is often linked back to the Mughal era, when the area lay on a trade route towards Afghanistan and was known for fabrics and hand-made carpets.

Panipat is reported to supply the large majority of blankets used by the Indian Railways and armed forces, and its district website notes that its hand- and power-loom blankets are sent to soldiers.

Panipat’s textile economy is often described as spanning several linked sub-sectors, including handloom weaving, woollen carpets, shoddy-yarn spinning, power-loom products, wet processing, hosiery and woollen yarn.

Panipat’s recycling units are reported to process more than one lakh (100,000) tonnes of textiles a year, much of it used clothing imported from Europe, North America and East Asia.

Panipat’s handloom sector is reported to have grown steadily over recent decades to around 25,000 handlooms employing more than 60,000 people.