The craft or handicraft
sector is the largest decentralized and unorganized sector of the Indian
economy. Craftspeople are the second largest employment sector in India, second
only to agriculture. Handicrafts are rightly described as the craft of the
people: there are twenty-three million craftspeople in India today. In India, craft
is not merely an industry but a creation symbolizing the inner desire and
fulfillment of the community. While handicrafts, be it metal ware, pottery,
mats, wood-work or weaving, fulfill a positive need in the daily life of
people, they also act as a vehicle of self-expression, and of a conscious
aesthetic approach to life.
The artisan is an
important factor in the equation of Indian society and culture. By performing
valid and fruitful social functions for the community, they earn for themselves
a certain status and position in society. S/he is the heir to the people's
traditions and weaves them into his/her craft. Most craft people have learned
their skills from their fathers or mothers since caste and family affiliations,
rather than training or market demand, have primacy in the Indian situation.
The handicrafts sector
is a home-based industry which requires minimum expenditure, infrastructure or
training to set up. It uses existing skills and locally available materials.
Income generation through craft does not (and this is important in a rural
society) disturb the cultural and social balance of either the home or the
community. Many agricultural and pastoral communities depend on their
traditional craft skills as a secondary source of income in times of drought,
lean harvests, floods or famine. Their skills in embroidery, weaving,
basket-making are a natural means to social and financial independence.
India is one of the
important suppliers of handicrafts to the world market. The Indian handicrafts
industry is highly labour intensive cottage based industry and decentralized,
being spread all over the country in rural and urban areas. Numerous artisans
are engaged in crafts work on part-time basis. The industry provides employment
to million artisans, which include a large number of women and people belonging
to the poor section of the society.
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