Khadi

Khadi (pronounced [kʰaːdiː], Khādī), derived from khaddar,[1][2][3] is a hand-spun and woven natural fibre cloth promoted by Gandhi as swadeshi (of homeland) for the freedom struggle of India and the term is used throughout the Indian subcontinent[4][5] The first piece of the hand-woven cloth was made in the Sabarmati Ashram of Gandhi during 1917–18.

14th-century Moroccan traveler Ibn Battuta mentioned Delhi sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq sending five varieties of cloth to the Yuan emperor in China.

[9] After the First Indian War of Independence in 1857, domestic textile production by mill or traditional methods declined to its lowest levels before khadi emerged as a "silent economic revolution" as an outcome of a long and laborious evolutionary process.

Substitute Indian cotton at was sourced at cheap prices as the British sought to supplement raw materials to Manchester-Lancashire area textile mills.

[11][better source needed][12] In the Edwardian era (1901–1914) the Swadeshi movement of boycotting foreign cloth remained prominent.

Gandhi collected large sums of money to create grassroots-level khadi institutions to encourage spinning and weaving which were certified by AISA.

Gandhi argued that the mill owners would deny handloom weavers an opportunity to buy yarn because they would prefer to create a monopoly for their own cloth.

Gandhi tried to put an end to this practice by threatening to give up khadi altogether, but since the weavers would have starved if they listened to him, they ignored the threat.

Initially, a clear emphasis could be seen on using khadi as an economic solution due to stagnation, from 1934 onwards the fabric became something that villagers could use for themselves.

Private sector enterprises have been able to make handloom weaving somewhat remunerative and the government also continues to promote the use of Khadi through various initiatives.

The National Internet Exchange of India Domain Dispute Policy Arbitration Tribunal in New Delhi rejected a private entity's claim that khadi is a generic word.