In an endeavor to provide a new lease of life to dying Kashmiri arts, proposed Trade Policy 2018-28 for J&K, a draft of which was recently put in the public domain, has suggested measures for brand promotion and quality control of the handicrafts. The policy also encourages government corporations such as Handloom and Handicrafts to adopt e-commerce platforms for the purpose of marketing and sale.
The trade policy which has been prepared by the state Industries and Commerce Department has sought to provide grant-in-aid to registered Small Scale Industry (SSI) units for brand promotion. “Government agrees that the brand promotion scheme requires a review and push through a well thought out programme by all the stakeholders,” states the policy.
The draft policy admits that complaints are regularly received about fake handicraft items being sold to the tourists as genuine Kashmir craft. “The traders has been wary of such practices as it brings bad name to the entire trade,” the policy states. It says “unscrupulous elements” in the trade find their own ways and keep indulging in such unfair practices to make a fast buck by living from season to season under different names.
According to the policy, in order to promote the handmade and authentic produce of the state, government has successfully registered seven regional crafts namely Kashmir Carpet, Kashmir Pashmina, Kashmir Papier-Machie, Kashmir Sozni, Kashmir Walnut Wood Carving, Kani Shawl and Khatambund under the Geographical Indications Act of India. “Further, the state government is also in the process of registering agro products like saffron under the same Act,” the policy states.
A Pashmina Testing and Certification Centre for Hallmarking (labeling) and certification of Kashmir Pashmina has also been set up in Craft Development Institute, Srinagar, the trade policy draft reads, adding, government intends to create more testing and certification centers.
“Six main handicrafts of Kashmir including Pashmina, Kani, Sozni, Khatamband, Paper Mache and Walnut Wood-Carving for Geographical Indication (GI) certification to discourage imitation and counterfeiting of the regional handicrafts,”
According to the trade policy, grant-in-aid is available to registered SSI units for “brand promotion?, financial incentives are available for research and development, acquiring of quality control equipment, registration with the Bureau of Indian Standards and registration with International Standards Organization (ISO) etc under the State Industrial Policy.
The trade policy highlights that various government corporations like Handicrafts and Handloom, Agro Industries, Horticulture (Produce and Marketing) etc must develop e-commerce platforms for trading products from respective sectors to increase the outreach of local products worldwide at lower costs. “The e-marketing shall also eliminate mediators and improves linkages between farmers, food processors, small time artisans/manufacturers and retailers,” the policy document states.
The trade policy has also has underlined the need of a major initiative in quality control, maintenance of standards in manufacturing/ processing and quality marking which can be created around the aura of Kashmir. “For this, the Government shall promote Quality Control Council for products especially agro and handicrafts comprising of all stakeholders to formulate and manage the quality marking programme under which very high and exacting standards of quality control mechanism would be created and enforced and liberal use of information technology, bar coding, holograms etc. shall be made,” the policy states.