Shimla, Sep 26 (PTI) A Weaver Services and Design Resource Centre will be set up in Himachal Pradesh's Kullu to provide a better platform for handicraft products for export in the international market, Union minister Piyush Goyal said on Sunday.

Goyal, Union minister of Commerce and Industry and Textiles, was interacting with handicrafts and handloom artisans under the Seva and Samarpan campaign on the occasion of golden jubilee of the statehood of Himachal Pradesh at Kullu. Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur presided over the function.

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The Union minister said Himachal Pradesh had immense potential for handicrafts and skill upgradation of artisans, modern equipments, and training would be imparted to prepare qualitative new designs in the Weavers Service Centre.

Goyal said that more attention was needed to modernise the design, quality, packaging and marketing so that the weavers get better price for their products in the international market.

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He suggested to organise district-wise exhibitions of these products in big cities, people associated with the textile industry and five star hotels so that their branding could be done at national and international level.

The Union minister asked the weavers to get their trademark for which the central government had reduced the registration fee by 80 per cent.

Goyal also interacted with entrepreneurs of the district and distributed woodcraft, handloom, embroidery machines and certificates to the local handicraft and handloom artisans.

Chief Minister Thakur said that necessary steps had been taken to encourage the artisans of the state.

At present, there are 13,572 registered weavers in the state whose livelihood was related to the skill of weaving and embroidery.

The handkerchief of Chamba along-with Kullu shawl and cap, and the shawl of Kinnaur had been given G.I. Tags. In order to facilitate online sales platform for weavers, a memorandum of understanding (MuU) had been signed with Flipkart and department was also doing online sale of products.

Thakur said that there had been a big change in the design and quality of handicrafts and handloom products in the state in the last 50 years and thousands of families had made it a means of livelihood.

The chief minister said the tourism sector had been badly affected during the Covid crisis and the handloom sector was no exception, affecting thousands craftsmen.

Earlier, Goyal along with Thakur visited the Atal Tunnel in Rohtang.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)