Rhea Bakshi | The Shri Ram School Moulsari |
Abstract
Since ancient times, art and culture have been intrinsic to the existence of Indian civilization, with India being the source of several indigenous and unique forms of arts and crafts, employing millions of people, throughout centuries. However, with the advent of modern technology and forms of mass production, the livelihood of artisans has come under threat. The artisans are facing problems such as Unfavourable laws, Lack of Policy level Prioritisation, Ineffective implementation of current laws, Misclassification, Accessibility of funds, low penetration of technology, absence of market intelligence, and poor institutional framework of artisan groups. This policy paper attempts to give an overview of the existing artisanal problems in India and highlight the challenges faced by artisans in India. This research paper also provides some recommendations and solutions to better the lives of the artisans of India. A few recommendations would be Global Marketing, Encourage innovation ,Develop infrastructure, Support fair trade practices and ethical sourcing of materials, Provide marketing and branding support, and Foster partnerships (Government and NGO’s). Some policy focused recommendations would be Providing easy and low-cost access to finance, Promoting entrepreneurship, Protecting traditional knowledge, Internet Economy, and enhancing E-commerce. Artisans’ predicament with e-commerce is viewed as the future. Despite the unlimited opportunities of online commerce, we need to shed light on the unique, but solvable, barriers such as branding, pricing and listing faced by the small-scale manufacturers and artisans. The problems highlighted in the policy paper have been gathered through semi-formal inter.