CM Vijay asked students, government employees and the public to wear khadi and use village-industry products to support weavers; government khadi shops offer 30% off all dress materials.
Ahead of Gandhi Jayanti, Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay on Thursday, October 1, 2026, appealed to everyone in Tamil Nadu — including school and college students, government employees and young people — to wear khadi and use Gramodyog (village industry) products, to support the livelihoods of handloom weavers and handicraft workers. Government khadi shops are offering a 30% discount on all dress materials.
In his statement, the Chief Minister said Gandhi Jayanti was an occasion to remember the history of the country’s freedom struggle and the values of simplicity, self-confidence and humanity. “If we buy khadi clothes and products, it gives recognition and respect to handloom weavers,” he said, adding that using local products would boost home-based production (DT Next, IANS).
| Group | Appeal |
|---|---|
| School and college students | Wear khadi clothes |
| Government employees | Wear khadi and use Gramodyog products |
| Young people and the public | Choose local, village-made products |
To encourage purchases, khadi shops run by the Tamil Nadu government are offering a 30% discount on all dress materials. The Chief Minister said wider use of khadi and village-industry goods would help improve the livelihoods of weavers and handicraft workers (DT Next, IANS).
Khadi — hand-spun, hand-woven cloth — was central to Mahatma Gandhi’s call for self-reliance during the freedom struggle, and buying it on Gandhi Jayanti is a long-standing tradition. In Madurai in 1921, Gandhi adopted the simple loincloth he wore for the rest of his life; the city’s renovated Gandhi Memorial Museum was reopened by the Chief Minister on September 28.
Sources: DT Next, IANS (via Punjab Kesari, The Hawk).
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