Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, Jan 5: Metal work products from Madhya Pradesh, wood craft from Tamil Nadu, and bamboo craft from the northeastern states, are just some of the items that vie for the attention of the visitors at the Sisir Saras exhibition being held at Exhibition Ground.
The 13-day national-level exhibition, which is being hosted by the Orissa Rural Development and Marketing Society, an autonomous organisation under the panchayati raj department, has come as a boon to the rural artisans.
The event, sponsored by the ministry of rural development, has given rural artisans a platform to showcase their products.
It has drawn a huge number of rural artisans from across the country. As many as 628 rural craftsmen and 396 self-help groups are participating in the exhibition in the city at which a staggering 275 stalls have been set up. Artisans from 25 other states are also showcasing their products at the exhibition.
Exhibitions held in the city provide the artisans market linkages in the absence of which they would not get remunerative prices, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had said while inaugurating Sisir Saras. The Chief Minister had added that middlemen should be removed completely in the sale of rural products by such artisans.
“These melas help us sell our products that are not found easily in the city. Such exhibitions help draw a good number of buyers and helps us do good business,” said a stall keeper.
Among the attractions at the Sisir Mela this year are Madhubani paintings from Bihar, Dhokra from Chhattisgarh, shawls and carpets from Jammu and Kashmir and kantha stitch from West Bengal.
The programme also includes workshops on designing and packaging of products, which will be organised to help artisans enhance the marketability of their products.