West Asia war hits home: ₹800 crore Kashmir handicrafts sector sees orders stall

₹800 crore handicrafts industry is seeing orders stall, cash get locked up and livelihoods fray—exposing its deep reliance on export markets.In Eidgah’s Narwara locality, Pashmina weaver Rauf Ahmad Qureshi, 54, keeps one eye on his loom and the other on television updates from the Gulf, where demand for his work is shaped. “We get work through traders, so any crisis impacts us quickly,” he told Mint. “An artisan lives hand to mouth.

If orders stop even for a few days, it becomes difficult to manage daily expenses.”A third-generation artisan, Qureshi produces shawls, stoles and embroidered pieces for buyers in the Gulf and Europe. Like thousands of others, he sits at the end of a labour-intensive chain that begins with sourcing Pashmina wool from Ladakh ends in global luxury markets.That chain is now under strain. The conflict involving Iran, Israel and the US has hit the Gulf—Kashmir’s largest market, accounting for roughly 50-60% of exports—slowing orders, delaying payments and pushing up logistics costs.Exporters say the disruption has been swift.

“Orders have almost stopped. Buyers are not thinking about carpets or handicrafts right now. They are thinking about survival,” said Srinagar-based carpet dealer Fayaz Ahmad Shah, referring to key markets such as Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).Uncertainty is also curbing business travel and fresh deals.

“We think multiple times before travelling to the Gulf now. Buyers have told us to wait before the situation turns normal. Most of our large commissions come from these markets.