Around 60 artisans from Kashmir are weaving over 275 square meter long hand woven carpet in Wailoo, Pattan area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, which authorities said is first of its kind in Kashmir.
The project is expected to be completed by the end of year 2021.
The carpet, the cost of which has not yet been estimated, will be exported to Russia after it is complete.
Srinagar based businessman Fayaz Ahmad Shah, who runs this project, claims the carpet will be Asia’s biggest.
Shah who heads his own firm Shah Qadir and Sons is a resident of Safa Kadal.
His father was also associated with Pashmina work. However, Shah had more inclination towards the Carpet industry and started working on it.
“Kashmir has never manufactured the biggest carpet like this. It was a challenge initially. The contract of completion was seven years and we had assured the buyers that it would be completed within 3 years,” he said.
“There are 60 artisans working on this project and around 70 percent of it has already been completed.,” he said.
He said despite industrialization, they got this biggest order from Russia and its cost is worth crores of rupees.
As per Guinness’s book of world records, the world’s largest hand-woven carpet measures 5,630 m² (60,600.81 ft²) and was manufactured by the Iran Carpet Company (Iran). It was created for the Abu Dhabi mosque and was measured in Abu Dhabi, UAE, in 2007.
The carpet was created in 9 parts and assembled in the mosque. The carpet would have been around 6,000 square meters originally, but parts of it had to be taken away in order to fit it onto the floor in the mosque, it said.
“Government has dedicated a full chapter for the revival of the carpet industry which is being the main stake of our exports from Kashmir especially silk carpet and we have already submitted in this regard,” he said.
Assistant Director Export Production, Mushtaq Ahmad Shah said it is the largest ever carpet being manufactured in Kashmir.
“I have never seen such a loom and before it, we were 16/24 feet long in the valley. It is a very huge size,” he said.
Mushtaq said in Iran also such carpets are rarely being manufactured.
He said such units in Kashmir can provide employment to hundreds of youth.
“Normally Kashmiri carpet was having traditional markets in Germany, USA, North American and Gulf countries. Now this carpet will open new markets to Russia which is yet to explore,” he said.
