J-K: Skill India project successfully revives dying Namda Art

New Delhi [India]: Under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana initiative, Namda Craft of Kashmir is being successfully revived and the first batch of Namda Art products for export to the United Kingdom (UK) has been shipped.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology of India on Friday flagged off the first batch of Namda Art products for export to the United Kingdom (UK).

Arshad Mir, Chairman of the Handicraft And Carpet Sector Skill Council said that Namda art always had a huge demand in the world but the previous government ignored it and the art was almost dying.

“Thanks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government that focused on the revival of dying Namda art. It has not only self-empowered youth in the valley but provided them a platform to showcase their talent to the world,” he said.

Razia Saleem, Trainer of Namda art said, “Revival of Namda art has given hope to girls in Kashmir who are mainly benefitting from it. The government provided not only the necessary help to revive it but also gave us a platform to export it to European countries where it has a huge demand.”

According to a statement, the successful implementation of this pilot project in Jammu and Kashmir, with the support of local industry partners such as Mir Handicrafts and Srinagar Carpet Training and Market Centre, exemplifies the power of public-private partnerships in driving skill development and attracting investments for economic development.

Namda craft is a rug made of sheep wool through the felting technique instead of the normal weaving process. Due to the low availability of raw materials, lack of skilled manpower and marketing techniques, the export of this craft declined by almost 100 per cent between 1998 and 2008, the statement said.

“Therefore, through this special project under PMKVY, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has designed a short-term training curriculum to preserve this endangered craft.

The project has been implemented in 25 batches in 3 cycles of training. Each training program was approximately three and half months, which resulted in the cycles being completed in approximately 14 – 16 months”, it read.

In the year 2021, Minister of State for the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Rajeev Chandrasekhar launched Pilot Special Project on reviving the Namda craft of Kashmir through skilling and upskilling of Artisans and Weavers in the crafts clusters of the Valley, the statement added.

Further, the statement said that under this initiative, nearly 2,200 candidates have been trained in the art of Namda craft, representing a significant milestone in preserving this traditional craft and empowering the local weavers and artisans. The project has successfully trained individuals across six districts of Kashmir, namely Srinagar, Baramulla, Ganderbal, Bandipora, Budgam, and Anantnag.