TeaFlower-shaped silver pieces, speckled in lapis lazuli blue for her simple and elegant central design—pink enamel cufflinks and a matching brooch, the latter with a peacock motif, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted her to US President Joe. Chose carefully before giving. Biden and US First Lady Jill Biden at the G-7 summit in Germany in late June. Then there were pieces of black pottery, which were polished to a dim luster and revered as the Objet d’Art from the palace of an ancient power. The recipient was Japanese PM Fumio Kishida. Other leaders such as French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Premier Mario Draghi and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz received ornate zari zardozi embroidered boxes, marble inlaid table tops and handmade tea sets. The golden thread that binds these treasures together is that they were all made exclusively by artisans from Uttar Pradesh, as part of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s ambitious program of reviving the traditional craft – the ODOP (One District One Product) scheme. were working. It has not only promoted neglected crafts, but the scheme has also set the tone for a steady increase in exports from UP. It comes under the MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) department.
Graphic: Tanmay Chakraborty
All these activities have seen an 80 per cent increase in value in UP’s exports in the last five years. Traditionally manufactured ODOP products have played a major role – as per the information of the state government, 70 per cent of the products exported from the state come under its purview. In 2017-18, the value of UP’s exports was Rs 88,967.4 crore; It is Rs 1,56, 897.2 crore for 2021-22. Even during the pandemic, the state’s exports saw a growth of 30 per cent, largely driven by the sale of ODOP products (both online and offline). The scheme launched in 2018 has not only protected the livelihood of the artisans but has also given them reason and confidence to revive the extinct traditional craft. It also prevented many of his physicians from emigrating to other states.
In the Nizamabad town of Azamgarh, more than 200 artisans now make pottery. Their number had dropped to 20 before ODOP took effect.
Sohit Prajapati, a 42-year-old black pottery artisan living in Azamgarh who previously sold bhel-puri in Mumbai, returned to his wheel in 2017. At one point, Sohit thought of moving back to Mumbai, but stopped when the demand for his goods and profits increased after he registered with the ODOP scheme. Under this, Sohit got financial support and help in selling his products on national and international fora. Sohit says that his income has tripled in the last four years. Nowadays they have orders from many countries including US and UAE. More than 200 artisans are now engaged in making black pottery in Nizamabad town of Azamgarh. Their number was reduced to 20 before the ODOP scheme came into effect.
the turning point
Manoj Vishwakarma, a 36-year-old Varanasi-based sixth-generation pink meenakari—a GI-tag art form—artisan tells India Today that after leaving several fellow artisans, he almost decided to follow the same. From a nadir in 2018, when the pink meenakari almost stopped in Varanasi, the change in the lives of artists like Vishwakarma was miraculous. Here too the credit for this goes to ODOP. Vishwakarma’s business started only after receiving financial support and guidance from experts through ODOP. “Earlier, we used to do pink meenakari on products like handmade peacocks, and idols of deities. Through experts, we got to know how to fashion cufflinks,” he says with pride.
The ODOP scheme was launched by Yogi Adityanath on January 24, 2018 to create product-specific traditional centers in each of the 75 districts of UP. It aims at the conservation, development and revival of local handicrafts and expertise, thus preventing migration to urban centers due to lack of employment. Altogether 62 traditional crafts were identified.
According to Navneet Sehgal, Additional Chief Secretary, MSME, “ODOP is reviving traditional handicrafts and this has helped in increasing the exports of the state. We have the largest number of MSMEs in the country, majority in the unorganized sector.” Whether it is carpet weaving, wood carving or leather work, artisans working in these age-old industries are being encouraged to turn to online platforms to gain exposure to a wider market, says Sehgal. Common Facility Centers (CFCs) are to be set up in all the districts providing various support to the workers.
sUnil Kumar, Joint Commissioner, ODOP, explains: “The government provides 25 percent subsidy on the loans disbursed under this scheme and trains artisans. CFCs are playing a vital role in the development of these products. CFC has all the facilities required for grading, packing and storing ODOP products under one roof. We have five centres, 28 more are approved. Ernst & Young is the project advisor to the plan and has studied all the districts/products. They suggest innovations to artisans so that their products become popular in international fora.”
The state government signed an MoU in 2020 with e-commerce website Flipkart to sell ODOP products on the website, which had earlier tied up with Amazon. ODOP officials say that in the last two years, products worth Rs 1,600 crore have been sold through Flipkart. ODOP also has its own online platform to sell products. UP Handicrafts Development and Marketing Corporation has launched an e-marketplace, www.odopmart.com, to sell them. ODOP has tied up with the Quality Council of India to standardize the quality as well as the National Institute of Fashion Technology to improve the design. For Yogi Adityanath, “ODOP is a symbol of UP’s legacy.” The Chief Minister tries to give gift hampers of ODOP products to the special guests as far as possible.
The ODOP scheme has been successful, but some districts need to accelerate it. The problems of the above leather industry should also be solved.
Ashfaq Ali, a resident of Sitapur, who works as an artisan in a CFC, tells how he used to make cotton spindles in Panipat earlier. But after getting the job here, he is lying there. His colleague Karimullah, who spent eight years in Panipat, says, “I had come to Sitapur during the lockdown. After a few weeks I got a similar job here.” CFC Sitapur secretary Hayat Kausar claims that such centers are helping artisans to survive. “Sitapur is famous for Dhuris. For making axles, we now have advanced machines like twister for doubling the threads, jacquard for designing and tufting for final design,” he says.
Though the ODOP scheme has started off brilliantly, it is not an unqualified success, as some districts still need a leg-up. Then there is the most important leather industry of UP. Although export of leather goods is dealt with as a significant part of ODOP, the industry located in and around Kanpur is facing many challenges. These range from lack of skilled labor to lack of design capabilities and unavailability of quality and cheap goods. Says Sehgal, “We are resolving the issues of tannery owners and connecting them more with ODOP buyers. Since there is a huge demand for leather, they can make up for the losses incurred during the pandemic.” Sehgal also mentioned the newly launched OSOP (One Station One Product) scheme on the lines of ODOP. Under this, railway stations across UP will serve as publicity centers showcasing the state’s ODOP scheme. Under this initiative, ODOP products of the respective districts will be displayed on the most visited platforms of all the railway stations in that particular district. For example, if a train is passing through Ayodhya district, all its railway stations will display the ODOP products of Ayodhya. That way, districts that still need help promoting their products will be covered, Sehgal says. The exquisite craftsmanship displayed in ODOP products deserves every endorsement. n