Srinagar, March 10: Chairman Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Government of India, on Sunday, provided 411 machinery and toolkits under the Khadi Gramodyog Vikas Yojana to the rural artisans of Jammu and Kashmir division at SKICC, Srinagar district in the gracious presence of KVIC Member, (North Zone) Shri Nagendra Raghuvanshi.
During the distribution program, in the presence of Shri Manoj Kumar, Chairman – KVIC, 300 Bee Boxes were distributed to 30 Beekeepers of Jammu through Video Conference under the Honey Mission Scheme, 100 Electric Wheels were given to 100 potters of Kashmir under the Kumbhar Empowerment Scheme, 10 Hydra Pulper Paper Mache machines were given to 100 artisans, under the ABFPI scheme 10 artisans were given 01 set of fruit and vegetable Machines and training certificates were distributed to 200 trainees undergoing training at PMTC Pampore.
Shri Manoj Kumar, Chairman, KVIC, addressing the beneficiaries said, “With the guarantee of Modi Government, in the last 10 years, the reach of Khadi and Village Industries products has gone from local to global.” He further said that, under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, to connect the skilled artisans of rural India with the ongoing ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat, Viksit Bharat’ and ‘Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat Abhiyan’, KVIC is providing modern training to the artisans on a large scale along with toolkits and machinery. Under the Gramodyog Vikas Yojana, KVIC has so far distributed Electric Wheels to more than 27,000 potter brothers and sisters, which has brought a big change in the lives of more than 1 lakh potters. Under this scheme, more than 6000 toolkits and machinery have been distributed, while under the Honey Mission Scheme, more than 2 lakh Honey Bee Boxes and Bee Colonies have been distributed to 20,000 beneficiaries so far.
Chairman KVIC further said that by establishing direct communication with the Khadi artisans, more than 10,000 Khadi artisans are getting employment through 110 Khadi Institutions in the Jammu State Office. 80% participation of Khadi artisans is by women. Through the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Program (PMEGP) 54,252 new units have been set up in Jammu and Kashmir in the last five years, to which an amount of Rs. 1124.39 crore along with margin money subsidy of 27% (grant amount) has been given by the Government of India. Through this, employment opportunities have been provided to 4,34,016 new people in 20 districts of Jammu and Kashmir.
Sharing his views with the artisans, KVIC Chairman Shri Manoj Kumar said that in the last 10 years, ‘New Khadi of New India’ has given a new direction to ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan’. As a result, sales of Khadi products have increased more than four times during this period. With the increase in production and sale of Khadi, the artisans of rural India have become economically prosperous. He further said that in order to realize the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s dream of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat, the Khadi and Village Industries Commission is going to the villages and border areas of India and promoting various village industry activities like Beekeeping, Pottery, Leatherwork, and Incense Sticks Making. The industry is providing skill development training to extremely poor workers in many rural cottage industries like Waste Wood and Turnwood Craft.
Machinery and Toolkits related to the relevant industry are distributed to the trained workers. Similarly, from 2018-19 to 2022-23, Jammu and Kashmir has distributed about 8950 Bee Boxes and Bee-Colonies to 895 Bee Keepers, Electric Wheels to 600 Potters as well as related Machinery and Toolkits have been distributed to 40 workers involved in Agarbatti Manufacturing.
Representatives of Khadi institutions, Khadi Workers and Artisans, beneficiaries of Gramodyog Vikas Yojana, representatives of Banks, Officers and Employees of KVIC and Union Territory of Jammu were present in the distribution program.
