bangalore mahatma gandhi advocated that khadi be worn by every indian but the weaver who gives the fabric more than its warp and weft has not gained anything at all the paradox of khadi on the one hand the fabric has become a statement of high fashion on the other its weavers earn less than the minimum wages provided under the mahatma gandhi rural employment guarantee scheme mregs this disparity stood stark during the celebrations to mark the 142nd birth anniversary of the father of the nation at gandhi bhavan in the city on sunday a delegation of the karnataka khadi gramodyog samyukta sangh federation officers and several khadi industry workers made a fervent appeal to the state government to revive the khadi industry in karnataka a memorandum was presented by the delegation to chief minister dv sadananda gowda who was the chief guest at the event there were 417 khadi units in the state but now there are only 160 about 30000 people including 20000 women work in these units after the central government stopped providing financial support in the form of working capital to khadi industry in 1995 there has been no financial incentives to khadi industry karnataka khadi gramodyog samyukta sangh federation chairman b b patil said mallamma hiremath who spins the yarn used for weaving national flag and had come all the way from gattanigere village in bagalkot district says after eight hours of work we earn only a paltry rs30 to rs40 every day it is very difficult for us to survive with this money lakshmamma yatnatti another weaver from gattanigere said that there were more than 30 families dependent on the khadi industry in their village patil said that the government should release rs725 crore balance it owed towards providing rebate for those purchasing khadi material chief minister sadananda gowda said that the government had already released rs 55 to rs 6 crore alcohol menace antialcohol campaign one of the pet topics of the father of the nation too echoed during the gandhi jayanthi celebrations at gandhi bhavan on sunday karnataka state temperance board president sachidananda hegde said that the average age of those taking to drinking alcohol in karnataka was 11 the crime rate has increased due to alcoholism nearly 50 of murders and 70 of rapes are committed by the accused in an inebriated condition he said the chief minister announced that he would consider providing rs 50 lakh grant to the temperance board