Arunachal CM inaugurates SARAS Fair in Itanagar promoting Rural Women Artisans

By: WE Staff | Wednesday, 15 January 2025

• CM Pema Khandu inaugurates SARAS Fair in Itanagar
• 10-day Fair organized at DK Convention Centre
• Initiatives announced under ArSRLM supporting Rural Women Artisans

Arunachal Pradesh's Chief Minister, Pema Khandu, inaugurated the SARAS Fair in Itanagar, aiming to promote rural artisans and entrepreneurs by offering them a platform to showcase and sell their handicrafts, handlooms, organic products, and food items. This will be a 10-day Fair organized at the DK Convention Centre premises.

The CM highlighted the importance of women's empowerment for the Northeast region's development and announced initiatives under the Arunachal State Rural Livelihoods Mission (ArSRLM) to support rural artisans, including seed capital of over Rs 3 crore and specialized training in weaving, crochet, knitting, embroidery, and handicrafts to rural SHGs. The fair also featured participation from other states' Self-Help Groups including Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, and Nagaland.

CM Pema Khandu in the presence of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj Minister Ojing Tasing and other delegates mentioned "India will develop when the North East develops. Arunachal will develop when its villages develop, and villages will develop when women of the villages develop."

The SARAS Fair, organized annually by the State Government, is a platform for local entrepreneurs and rural artisans to showcase their products and promote sustainable livelihoods. The fair aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of "Vocal for Local" and "Atmanirbhar Bharat". State SHGs and federations manage a corpus pool of about Rs 300 crore, and Arunachal has certified over 1600 Lakhpati Didis in the first phase. The state has identified 29,000 potential SHG members for capacity building.