India's First Stamp Made From Cloth

Subhendu Ray of the Hindustan Times reports, "A unique stamp printed on cloth is all set to grace the collections of philatelists world wide."

The stamp will be issued on February 12, the inaugural day of week-long world philatelic exhibition —Indipex 2011. It will bear the image of Mahatma Gandhi and be printed on khadi according to the article.

Philatelist Madhukar Jhingan is quoted in the piece as saying this is a revolutionary step as no Indian stamp was ever made on any material other than paper. Madhukar also said, "I am sure this stamp will be in high demand. Earlier, a few countries such as Bhutan, Thailand and Austria had successfully experimented with stamps on cloth and other materials."

According to Wikipedia...

"Khadi is not just a cloth, it is a whole movement started by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. The Khadi movement aimed at boycotting foreign goods and promoting Indian goods, Thereby improving India's economy.

"Mahatma Gandhi began promoting the spinning of khādī for rural self-employment and self-reliance (instead of using cloth manufactured industrially in Britain) in 1920s India thus making khadi an integral part and icon of the Swadeshi movement. The freedom struggle revolved around the use of khādī fabrics and the dumping of foreign-made clothes."

"To this day most politicians in India are seen only in khādī clothing. The flag of India is only allowed to be made from this material, although in practice many flag manufacturers, especially those outside of India, ignore this rule."

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