Jammu, July 2 (Representative) A five-day Product Development workshop for 18 women artisans of Jammu and Kashmir, aimed at training them on developing innovative products to reach different kinds of markets for their livelihood, concluded here on Monday at the Jammu Government Polytechnic College. The workshop was part of a five-year ‘Culture and Conflict’ project being implemented by the ‘Yakjah’ Reconciliation and Development Network, a non-profit social innovation for peacebuilding. It was supported by the Gender Justice and Security Hub of the London School and Economics and the workshop was led by Amod Ranjan from Rangsutra Crafts India, a leading brand in handcrafted products. The 18 women artisans from Basholi, Jammu, Jagti camp of Kashmiri Pandits, Srinagar and Ganderbal in Kashmir participated in the workshop. The artisans earlier have also undergone skilling workshops on design development, learning the art of printing, color combinations, pricing, packaging and branding.
They learned how to use different mediums and work on a diversity of textures, patterns and styles to cater to both national and international markets, read a handout. The workshop was inaugurated by Dr. Arun Bangotra and in his opening remarks he said that women can become successful entrepreneurs. “They are resilient, determined, have the power to forecast, make decisions, and have critical thinking acumen,” he added. He appraised the artisans about various courses being offered by their institute. He also said that the Rangsutra concept and model must reach every household. Ashima Kaul, project lead in India, while sharing the concept said that women across cultures have knowledge, skills, and the power of resilience to transform complex and multidimensional development challenges in favor of the well-being of their communities, families, and self. She opined that intractable development challenges cannot be resolved by a single organization or from one sectoral or disciplinary perspective.
“Therefore different stakeholders like government, education, financial and technical institutions, NGOs and community of practitioners have to come together to meet the challenges’’, she said and added, “The project is aligned with Government of India’s vision to promote handmade products and develop women’s entrepreneurship for their livelihood keeping in mind the Sustainable Development Goals of 2030”. She stressed that women can play a pivotal role in India’s financial growth. Present during the workshop were also Yakjah’s researchers and coordinators, Akshay Kumar Sharma, Anamika Bharti and Urzeeba Bhat. The workshop concluded with a certificate ceremony wherein the Chief Guest Leena Padha, Director Skill Mission, Principal Government Polytechnic College, Dr. Renu Nanda, Head of Department of Education, University of Jammu, Prof.Archana Kaul, Principal, Government Degree College, Ramban, Khalid Sheikh, representative of the Skill Mission awarded the certificates to the artisans. Leena Padha appreciated the efforts of Yakjah and the artisans and full support was ensured from their institutions in advancing the agenda of sustainable livelihood and capacity building of the artisans.