Handicraft exports from the North Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir for the first eight months of the current fiscal have risen to Rs. 22.82 billion, Minister of State for Industries and Commerce Sajad Ahmed Kitchloo said while talking to a group of artisans in Jammu.
The Minister said promotion of the handicrafts and handloom sector is one of the main agenda of the state government.
Noting that the state’s world renowned handicrafts have great potential for employment generation and growth, Mr. Kitchloo urged the artisans to best exploit this potential.
He urged the weavers and artisans to avail the first of its kind credit facility introduced in the state. He said the interest subsidy for weavers and artisans in the state has been raised from 5 percent to 10 percent and the slab of Micro Credit without any mortgage has been increased from Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 100,000.
Mr. Kitchloo said around 4,300 weavers are being trained in carpet weaving as a part of the Skill Upgradation and Entrepreneurship program.
He said a programme titled Masters in Craft Management and Entrepreneurship (MCME) has been officially started at Craft Development Institute (CDI) Srinagar. The programme has been recognized by the University of Kashmir, he added.
It is for the first time that such a programme has been started in the country, he said, and added that the move would contribute in developing a technically efficient work force for the handicraft sector.
It is expected that those successfully completing the course would get good career opportunities as trained craft managers, craft trainers, craft merchandisers and craft entrepreneurs in government as well as private undertakings, the Minister said.
Source:
http://www.fibre2fashion.com/news/textile-news/newsdetails.aspx?news_id=121445