The central government’s “Swadeshi” drive set off for a Pan-India expansion with the paramilitary forces’ canteens beginning the sale of handmade Khadi products. Minister of Home Affairs and Cooperation, Shri Amit Shah, on Monday, launched the sale of Khadi products in 107 Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) canteens and said all canteens of paramilitary forces in the country will begin selling Khadi products very soon.
“For Gandhi Ji, Khadi was a symbol of Swadeshi and it is also a tool to fulfil Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s dream of Aatmanirbhar Bharat. Khadi itself guarantees purity. I am delighted that the sale of Khadi products has begun in 107 paramilitary canteens and very soon Khadi products will be made available in all paramilitary canteens across the country,” the Home Minister said during the launch on the side lines of the foundation laying ceremony for the Central Workshop and Stores of BSF at Tamulpur in Assam. Chief Minister of Assam, Shri Himanta Biswa Sarma, Chairman KVIC, Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena, Home Secretary Shri Ajay Kumar Bhalla and Director General of BSF and CRPF were present on the occasion.
Shri Shah heaped praises on KVIC for creating sustainable rural employment in the country and said KVIC’s flagship schemes like Honey Mission, Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana, Leather and Carpenter Empowerment Schemes had the potential to create sustainable employment in Assam’s Bodoland. “If KVIC starts connecting people with its self-employment activities, this will surely eradicate the problem of unemployment in Bodoland and also reconnect the Bodo youths, who had given up arms, with the development of the nation,” he said. The Home Minister emphasized that under the leadership of Prime Minister, KVIC clocked a historic turnover of Rs 1.15 lakh crore in 2021-22, registering a massive growth of nearly 250%.
Earlier, in a bid to push Swadeshi, the Home Minister had made it mandatory for all CAPF canteens to sell maximum “Swadeshi” products through Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC). To begin with, 32 products including National Flag, Cotton Towels, Honey, Kacchi Ghani Mustard Oil, Agarbatti, Daliya, Papad, Pickles, Amla products, etc. will be supplied in the canteens located in Delhi NCR, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Assam and other states.
The development comes after KVIC’s historic agreements with paramilitary forces for the supply of mustard oil, cotton durries and woollen blankets. So far, KVIC has successfully supplied products worth nearly Rs 17 crore to different paramilitary forces. The supply includes 3 lakh KG (3000 MT) of Kacchi Ghani mustard oil worth Rs 5.50 crore, 2.10 lakh cotton bed durries worth Rs 11 crore and woollen blankets amounting to Rs 40 lakh.
Notably, the paramilitary canteens will provide a big platform to sell Khadi products and it will directly impact the production and sales of KVIC. Modalities are being worked out for supplying a wider range of Khadi products to the paramilitary forces that will include Khadi fabric and readymade garments, cosmetics and eatables and herbal products.