This Gandhi Jayanti dāram launches Kala
Cotton Khadi collection for women and
men. Kala (pronounced kah-lah) cotton is old-world cotton of the type G.Herbaceum
that is endemic to the district of Kachchh in Gujarat .
Its main features are short to medium staple length and closed to semi opened
boll type, which is picked along with its calyx. Kala Cotton is genetically
very pure. In current conventional agriculture, majority of the cotton grown in
India is Bt
Cotton, which is a genetically modified hybrid. Kala Cotton is among the most
water efficient cottons in the world. It grows easily in rainfed conditions—
even in areas with less than 40cm rainfall which are considered drought prone.
Its drought tolerance (i.e. moisture stress level) is so amazing that it does
not require additional watering (i.e. irrigation) to complete its life cycle.
Studies show that approx 1400 liters of irrigated ground water is needed to
cultivate 1 kg of cotton as against Kala Cotton which is completely rain-fed.
For the most part, Kala Cotton is grown in Kachchh without use of chemical
fertilizers and pesticide. Thus, the ecological footprint of Kala Cotton is
very low as compared to other cottons and it is among the most energy efficient
and carbon neutral in the world.
KHAMIR’s organic cotton initiative
reintroduces a holistic approach to cotton textile production in
harmony with the ecology of Kachchh, by facilitating the linkages of a sustainable local production chain—thus
providing income for small and marginal farmers, spinners, ginners and weavers.
Also available
at dāram is a range in Khadi from
Sandur, Bellary district of
Karnataka and Khadi fabrics, sarees,
dupattas from Dastkar Andhra Marketing Association (DAMA)
