Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari on Monday evening inaugurated 50 artisan-based Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI) clusters that are spread over 18 States.
"In the 50 clusters inaugurated today, over 42,000 artisans have been supported in the traditional segments of muslin, khadi, coir, handicraft, handlooms, woodcraft, leather, pottery, carpet weaving, bamboo, agro-processing, tea, etc," read the press release by the Ministry.
The Ministry of MSME has funded an amount of around Rs 85 crore for the development of these 50 clusters.
The Ministry of MSME is implementing SFURTI with a view to orgzing traditional industries and artisans into clusters to make them competitive and increase their income.
Inaugurating the clusters, Gadkari said more research needs to be done on what kind of village products are required by the consumers, and how to attractively design and market these products. He suggested that the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad may be approached to improve the design and attractiveness of traditional products. A web portal is also required, on the lines of Amazon or Alibaba, to market these products effectively, both in India and abroad, he added.
The Minister also pointed out the need to step up the pace of formation of such clusters, since only 82 of the 371 announced so far are actually functional, and said a target of 5,000 clusters is easily achievable if red-tape can be reduced.
The clusters were inaugurated in presence of the Minister of State of MSME, Pratap Chandra Sarangi, Secretary MSME, B.B. Swain, Members of Parliament, local MLAs, and senior officers of the Ministry of MSME.
Minister of State, MSME, Sarangi said the formation of the clusters builds the confidence of traditional craftsmen, and it is part of the government's strategy of keeping villages at the core of the economic policy.
These clusters have been inaugurated in the States of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mpur, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
( With inputs from ANI )
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