E-marketing portal for Indian handicrafts launched

NEW DELHI, INDIA: With a view to provide e-marketing facilities for Indian handicrafts and handlooms products, the Government of India launched a portal on Thursday, developed by the Central Cottage Industries Corporation of India Ltd (CCIC).

The portal was launched by Union Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran. With the launch of this portal the government expects that the sale of India handicrafts and handloom products would increase globally.

“E-marketing has caught the imagination of consumers world over, and it is worth Rs 37,000 crore annually. With this initiative, we hope to capture a sizeable part of this growing market," said Dayanidhi Maran.

He said the portal will host more than 1,000 wide-ranging handicrafts and handlooms products with specifications, including origin and place of production, along with high quality graphical display, with a single window gateway for procurement with fast and easy navigation in a customized interface.

The portal provides e-payment facility through major debit/credit card in a secured environment, and offers online tracking of the shipment along with a transparent redressal mechanism for any disputes arising thereof, the minister added.

As committed in the ‘Agenda for 100 Days’, 1,500 contemporary designs have also been hosted on the websites of Office of Development Commissioner (Handlooms) & National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), which are free, downloadable with technical details and regional language interface.

The contemporary designs would help weavers and artisans to innovate, produce contemporary products and help them in sustaining and capturing markets both domestic and export, he added.