Tamil Nadu - Madurai   

Traditional artisans to be trained in additional trades

MADURAI: The Madurai division of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) plans to conduct training for traditional artisans in additional trades to supplement their regular income.

Among the village industry trades being contemplated are bee keeping, agarbathi making and soap manufacturing. These additional trades would help the traditional artisans as their regular income was insufficient to sustain themselves, Divisional Director of Madurai Region, M.T. Wakode, told The Hindu.

A training programme in bee-keeping was conducted some time back for weavers at Kandanur in Sivaganga district, which is among the 10 southern districts coming under Madurai division of the KVIC.

“Apart from this training programme, we are also planning to encourage the children of artisans and other uneducated youth in the region to take up projects under Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP),” he said.

PMEGP awareness programmes were being conducted for the purpose. Further, KVIC was also ready to make arrangements for loans through PMEGP for the artisans.

A group of artisans making broomsticks and bamboo baskets had submitted 58 applications through the District Industries Centre (DIC) for taking up projects under the programme, he said.

Under the PMEGP, Mr. Wakode said, 17 projects employing 74 persons had been sanctioned so far with a margin money of Rs. 12.47 lakh to be released. The target for the current fiscal was 288 projects, with margin money of Rs. 3.45 crore, intended to generate employment for 2,880 persons.

Speaking about another Central Government project to help artisans, he said that a grant of Rs. 25,000 was given to an artisan/institute under ‘Workshed scheme’ to construct sheds.

This scheme was intended to help spinners and weavers to have a shelter for keeping their equipment. The target for the current and last fiscal was 250 with the total amount sanctioned being Rs. 62.50 lakh for each year, he said.

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