MillenniumPost
Bengal

Govt developing Muslin Tourism Circuit in 3 places

Kolkata: In a significant stride to boost the sale and marketing of Muslin fabric, the Mamata Banerjee government is developing Muslin Tourism Circuit (MTC) at three places in the state.
The West Bengal Khadi & Village Industries Board (WBKVIB) will take foreign tourists to these places so that they can witness the manufacture of muslin fabric with their own eyes.
"We will be giving a big push to our Muslin Tourism Circuit right after the Durga Pujas. The project will be formally launched on September 20, in presence of state Education minister Partha Chatterjee, minister of state for Tourism, Indranil Sen, minister of state for textiles, Swapan Debnath and ambassadors from the foreign embassies in Kolkata," Gouri Sankar Dutta, chairman of WBKVIB said.
The Board has tied up with Society for Kindling Handicrafts & Indigenous Art which will take the foreign tourists to places that has been marked for the MTC. The Society is run by a husband-wife duo who are good in organising tours as well as designing.
The Board is hopeful that the foreign embassies will help them in their plan to take tourists at the MTC's.
The places that have been selected for MTC are villages Akalpoush and Sasinara in Burdwan and Berhampore in Mursidabad.
Village Baluchar in Jiagunge that is a hub for Silk and Baluchari will also be a part of the circuit.
Foreign tourists who will take up tour of Burdwan and Murshidabad district will be taken to these places apart from the conventional tourist destinations.
"We have noticed that these foreigners have a knack of joining hands with the weavers in making of handmade fine fabric. Watching the production process on their own also increases the chances of buying the products. They can purchase directly from the weavers on spot if they want or can give orders for delivery. We have almost completed creating the basic infrastructure of a sales outlet toilet, rest and some light tea and snacks at these places for felicitating the foreigners," Mritunjoy Bandyopadhyay, CEO of WBKVIB said.
The weavers who have lent out their places for creating the basic infrastructure will also get a token amount from the Board annually.
The Khadi Board has already done a pilot project of the MTC at Burdwan and Jiagunge and has received an excellent response.
The WBKVIB has already chalked out an aggressive marketing strategy for Muslin. An exclusive muslin outlet has been started in Dakshinapan market, Dhakuria a few months back.
The Board has tied up with an NGO that has started selling a wide range of muslin at their outlet in Nazrul Tirtha New Town from August 1.
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