Calcutta Rescue has two weaving projects, Canning and Tamuldah in South 24 Parganas, a district 30 kilometres south of Kolkata, a rural area with high unemployment and little in the way of job opportunities.

We give training in basic weaving and provide employment to local youth from poor backgrounds as well as former CR school students. In addition to the weaving training, these youngsters receive a basic education in Bengali, English and Maths.

The centres weave cotton yarn to produce jute mix, poplin, lining, silk, cora, clothing and other weight cloths, creating fabric to their own design patterns as well as catering to specific orders. Finished goods produced on site are saris, lunghis (wrap arounds for men) and bandages (750 pieces per month, enough to fulfill our clinics’ total requirement). The majority of these fabrics are used by our handicrafts project for making clothes for CR patients and school children as well as for the production of most handicraft items. In winter, thick cotton shawls are also woven for distribution to our patients.