*Immense possibilities of handicraft development in Chhattisgarh – Chief Minister Shri Vishnu Dev Sai*
*Chief Minister attends the assumption of office ceremony of the newly appointed President of Chhattisgarh Handicrafts Development Board, Smt. Shalini Rajput*
*Chief Minister distributes grant money under the tools and equipment scheme to artisans*
Raipur, May 03, 2025/ Chief Minister Shri Vishnu Dev Sai today attended the assumption of office ceremony of the newly appointed President of Chhattisgarh Handicrafts Development Board, Smt. Shalini Rajput, held at Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Auditorium in Raipur. On this occasion, the Chief Minister said that there are immense possibilities for handicraft development in Chhattisgarh. The demand for the artifacts here is up to foreign countries. The government is committed to providing a market for Chhattisgarh’s handicraft products and ensuring a fair price for the skills of the artisans. The Chief Minister distributed a grant of five thousand rupees each to the artisans under the tools and equipment scheme.
Chief Minister Shri Sai, while congratulating and wishing the newly appointed President of Chhattisgarh Crafts Development Board, Smt. Shalini Rajput, said that under her leadership, the Chhattisgarh Handicrafts Development Board will work for the betterment of the artisans. He said that artisans are doing very good work in every area of Chhattisgarh. During Sushasan Tihar, I got a chance to visit Shilpgram of Kondagaon. There I met the artisans and closely observed their art. Similarly, artisans in Ektal of Raigarh also make artifacts from metal. Beautiful figures of wood are made from woodcraft in Bastar. The skill of the artisans is amazing throughout the state. Today, the beautiful cap that was presented to me in this program was made of Chhind and Kansa. In Kotampani near our village in Jashpur, very beautiful artifacts are also made from Chhind and Kansa.
Chief Minister Shri Sai said that there is a need to provide more and more training to the artisans. It is a very important thing that the work of handicrafts is mostly done in rural areas. Therefore, through handicraft development, we can provide employment to the villagers on a very large scale. I hope that the Handicrafts Development Board will work in this direction and will connect the artisans with employment by providing them training as well as more and more loan-subsidy.
The Chief Minister said that there is a demand for Dokra art of Kondagaon in foreign countries. It is necessary that the artisans get a fair price for the product along with the market. Without intermediaries, the reach of the artisans should be directly to the market, so that they get more and more profit.
Chief Minister Shri Sai said that it is a matter of great happiness that Padi Ram Manjhi of Garhbengal, Chhattisgarh has been honored with the Padma Shri. The art of Chhattisgarh is the pride of our country, it should get recognition all over the world.
Assembly Speaker Dr. Raman Singh said that there is magic in the hands of the artists of Chhattisgarh. Whether it is about clay toys or bell metal, embroidery, godna and terracotta, the artisans of the state are making very beautiful products of their art. Chhattisgarh’s handicrafts should participate in national and international level exhibitions. Our artisans have natural talent. There is also a need to involve designers for large-scale handicraft production.
On this occasion, Women and Child Development Minister Smt. Laxmi Rajwade, MP Smt. Kamlesh Jangde, MLA Shri Dharamlal Kaushik, Shri Sunil Soni, Shri Asharam Netam, Shri Gajendra Yadav, Presidents of various corporations-boards-commissions, Managing Director of Chhattisgarh Handicrafts Development Board Shri JP Maurya and many dignitaries were present.
