In District Budgam, 73 training centres for 14 different crafts with each center having the enrolled capacity of 25 Girl trainees are being run by the Department of Handicrafts for preservation, promotion and propagation of traditional Crafts.Presently out of 1825 enrolled trainees in the district, 350 are undergoing training in Crewel, 300 in Sozni, 275 in Staple, 200 in Paper Machie, 175 in Tapestry, 175 in Chain Stitch, 150 in Wood Carving, 100 in Zari, 50 in Copperware, 25 in Silverware and 25 in Carpet weaving craft. This training programme involves yearly expenditure of Rs 27.00 lakh on stipend of trainees.Apart from training programmes, 42567 artisans of varied crafts of Budgam district stand registered with District Handicrafts Office Budgam. Handicraft being the hallmark of Kashmiri identity holds significant place in our State. Kashmiri handmade items being unique in design and quality have been in demand the world over. Handicraft sector being environment friendly, labour intensive and requiring low capital investment has huge employment generating potential and the State Government is taking all possible steps to boost this sector.
As regards the financial support, 5500 Registered Artisans have been granted Financial Assistance under Artisan Credit Card (ACC) Scheme with 10% interest Subvention being provided by the Department. During the current financial year the Department has released an amount of Rs 305 lakh for the district as interest subsidy in favor of the beneficiaries financed under the scheme.Regarding better marketing avenues and facilitating Sale-cum-Exhibition in and outside the State, the Department is contemplating promotion of handicraft business through e-commerce by tying up with e-commerce giants like Snapdeal, Flipkart, Amazon etc for which District Handicrafts Office Budgam has already started educating and enlisting artisans and facilitating their hassle-free acquisition of PAN cards and VAT/CST (TIN Number) registrations.There has been revenue realization of Rs 9.85 lakh in the district on account of the sale of trainees’ products during year 2015-2016. Assistant Director Handicrafts, Budgam exuded confidence in these initiatives such as leveraging of e-commerce sites and opined that increased and better financial support, encouragement for new innovation and adoption of better marketing strategies will help to tap the huge potential of this sector.