NIFT training programme launched to give Changthang artisans a market edge

CFCs must become productive community assets: DC

PHOBRANG/NYOMA: Deputy Commissioner, Changthang, Nitish Rajora, IAS, on Tuesday said modern skills and stronger market linkages were essential to improving the earning potential of local artisans as he inaugurated a five-day Dyeing Technique Upgradation Programme at Phobrang, Durbuk, conducted by NIFT Srinagar.

The programme, being held under the “Har Haath – Skill & Modern Upgradation” approach, seeks to equip local artisans with contemporary dyeing techniques and improved production practices to enhance the quality, value and income potential of their traditional products.

Interacting with trainees after inaugurating the programme, the DC distributed training kits and encouraged artisans to apply the skills acquired through the training to develop higher-value and commercially viable products. The initiative is aimed at strengthening their technical capabilities while making traditional products more responsive to changing market requirements.

Rajora also formally handed over the Phobrang Common Facility Centre (CFC) to Self-Help Groups (SHGs), setting in motion the systematic transfer of CFCs to SHGs and Cooperatives across Changthang.

The Administration has fixed October 10 as the deadline for completing the handover of all CFCs. The centres are intended to provide artisans with dedicated workspaces and common facilities for production, training and collective enterprise.

The DC directed SHGs and Cooperatives to ensure effective utilisation of the CFCs and develop them into productive community assets. Products manufactured through the centres will subsequently be supported through Brand Ladakh emporiums, exhibitions and other market-linkage platforms, providing artisans wider access to markets and better returns.

Later, during an inspection of the Cooperative Marketing Shop at Nyoma, Rajora reviewed the functioning of the Cooperative Department and directed the Assistant Registrar Cooperatives, Nyoma, to undertake advance winter planning.

Given the difficult winter conditions and connectivity constraints in Changthang, he stressed the need to ensure adequate stocking of essential commodities at Cooperative shops and maintain uninterrupted supplies across the region during the winter months.

The day’s interventions brought together artisan skill development, community-based use of CFC infrastructure and strengthening of Cooperative services, with the focus on expanding livelihood opportunities and ensuring reliable access to essential commodities in the remote areas of Changthang. The DC was accompanied by the Assistant Director, Handlooms & Handicrafts, Leh, SDM Durbuk, concerned departmental officials, SHG representatives and local artisans.