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West Bengal has a rich heritage of handloom weaving, and sarees occupy an important place in this cultural legacy. From an economic standpoint, handlooms come second only to agriculture in providing livelihood to the rural population of the state. Every district has weaving ‘clusters’, which are home to artisan communities, each specializing in specific varieties of handloom weaving.The map here illustrates the key regions of origin of the famous cotton and silk sarees from West Bengal. Here is an overview of the well-known handloom products of each district in the state: Darjeeling: Woollen shawls, coarse cotton sareesJalpaiguri: Cotton towels (also called ‘gamchha’), coarse cotton sareesKoch Bihar: Tant sarees, fine and coarse cotton sareesUttar Dinajpur: Tant sarees, fine cotton sareesDakshin Dinajpur: Tant sarees, fine cotton sareesMaldah: Cotton towels, lungi, coarse cotton sareesMurshidabad: Pure silk sarees, Garad & Korial sarees, silk fabric & shirts, cotton towels, coarse cotton sareesBirbhum: Tussar sarees, Tussar fabric & shirts, Kantha workBardhaman: Tant & Jamdani sarees, fabric for scarves, stoles & home furnishings, coarse sarees, cotton towels, lungi, dhoti, handspun cotton shirtsNadia: Tant, Jamdani & Muslin sarees, dress materials, fabric for scarves & stoles, coarse cotton sarees, cotton towels & lungiPurulia: Tussar sarees, Tussar fabric & shirts, coarse cotton sarees, cotton towelsBankura: Baluchari & Tussar sarees, silk & Tussar fabric, shirts & scarves, cotton towels, fabrics for home furnishings. West Medinipur: Tussar sarees, fine & coarse cotton sarees, cotton shirts & towelsEast Medinipur: Coarse cotton sarees, cotton shirts, furnishings & towelsHooghly: Tant sarees, fine cotton sarees, dhoti, coarse cotton sareesHowrah: Tant sarees, cotton shirts, dhoti, furnishings & towels, coarse cotton sareesNorth 24 Parganas: Coarse cotton sarees, cotton towels & lungiSouth 24 Parganas: Tant sarees, fine & coarse cotton sarees, cotton towelsKolkata: Not a weaving center, but has the largest markets for all handloom products from West Bengal