KVIC's first International workshop on pottery

In a unique initiative undertaken by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) for the enhancement of Pottery in India, a Member of British Empire (the most excellent order of the British Empire) Kate Malone and Graham Inglefield, renowned British Potters conducted a two day master training workshop on hand moulding of clay for 10 skilled potters in Kanyakumari. Kate and Graham also visited the Pottery clusters supported by KVIC in Kanyakumari to understand the impact of the 'Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojna'.

Speaking about the initiative Chairman KVIC, VK Saxena said, "Kate and I met in October last year for the first time and we both agreed that the pottery industry in India has a lot of potential but needs quality interventions and we must explore new ways to make it reach out to a larger audience."

Appreciating the efforts of KVIC, Kate Malone said, "It was really exciting and interesting to conduct a workshop and a small demonstration for 10 very focused master potters from different parts of India. My focus was to make them think out of the box. India has huge potential in pottery which is still untapped. I congratulate KVIC for doing an amazing work in the field of pottery. We have common goals and want to support the pottery community. Hoping that we will work on something exciting in the future."

Saxena further said, "KVIC has distributed around 14000 electric chaaks across India so far and has benefitted over 58000 rural potters and divided them into clusters, helping them to advance their skills and technology. Besides, KVIC is continuously helping these pottery clusters by providing sales and marketing avenues."

"In one such initiative, on the request of KVIC, the Indian Railways has instructed 400 stations across India to use terracotta articles for catering services."

Potters in remote villages of India invest heavily in terms of their time, energy and resources, but are unable to earn respectable amount of income, compared to other contemporary employment options.

In order to alleviate this weakest section of the society by providing them advanced training platform and modern day technology, KVIC's 'Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojna' will definitely play an impactful and

significant role.