Staff Reporter

Shillong, March 16: A two-day Craft Bazaar 2023 organised by the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) Shillong was inaugurated by the Director of Textiles & Handicrafts, Government of Arunachal Pradesh, Haj Dodung today at Umsawli.

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Dodung said that NIFT, Shillong has done commendable work by organising such a programme and creating a platform for artisans to showcase their work and sell their products.

He emphasized the importance of supporting artisans, who are the backbone of the economy, to preserve the tradition of arts and crafts, even in the fast-paced digital world.

The Commissioner and Secretary, Election Department & Chief Electoral Officer of Meghalaya, Frederick Roy Kharkongor, IAS spoke about the importance of contemporizing ethnicity and folk stories in handloom and handicraft of the region.

While speaking at the launch of the event, the Campus Director Shri Shankar Kumar Jha expressed his appreciation for the artisans’ work and emphasized the critical role that institutions such as NIFT play in promoting and showcasing the unique and creative crafts of India globally in collaboration with artisan community.

The Craft Bazaar is a unique initiative of the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, designed to provide a platform for artisans of Handicrafts and Handlooms to showcase their work and sell their products.

Artisans from 23 clusters of North East India were invited to participate in the Craft Bazaar 2023, where they displayed their unique and creative crafts. The display left the attendees impressed and fascinated, some of the crafts on display included native beads and Viko from Nagaland, handlooms from Aizawl and Guwahati and weaving of Meghalaya.

The two-day Craft Bazaar will conclude on March 17, 2023, and is open to the general public, who can visit the NIFT campus and buy handicrafts and handlooms directly from the artisans.