In a significant step towards the socio-economic empowerment of rural artisans, NABARD inaugurated a modern Common Facilitation Centre (CFC) for the ‘Kanisoz’ Off-Farm Producer Organisation (OFPO) at Odina, Sumbal in Bandipora.
The facility was inaugurated by Dr B.R. Premi, Chief General Manager, RMSMED, NABARD, Head Office in the presence of Vikas Mittal, Officer-in-Charge (OIC), NABARD J&K, Deputy General Manager NABARD, Srinagar, AGM, RMSMED Jammu, AGM (DDM) Bandipora, along with other senior officials and representatives of implementing agency IGSSS.
The Kanisoz OFPO has been established under the OFPO grant based project of NABARD, aimed at organizing rural artisans into registered corporate entities/businesses. Under the project, NABARD has sanctioned a total grant assistance of Rs 45 Lakh over the period of three years, covering various interventions such as formal registration of the OFPO as a Producer Company under the Companies Act, capacity-building measures, including the establishment of an administrative office with manpower, specialized training programs and exhibitions for the artisans, creation of design bank, acquiring the licences, conduct of audit, formulation of a business plan and establishment of Common Facilitation Centre (CFC) among others.
An important component of this comprehensive project is the establishment CFC which is equipped with specialized machinery procured under the project. The center will allow artisans to undertake essential post-weaving processing including washing, drying, and ironing of premium Kani shawls, under one roof.
This infrastructure is expected to significantly enhance the final finish and market readiness of the products, thereby ensuring better price realisation for the weavers. The Kanisoz OFPO as on date has successfully mobilised 200 traditional artisans from the region, all of whom have been formally enrolled as active shareholder members of the Producer Company.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. B.R. Premi emphasised NABARD’s unwavering commitment to fostering rural prosperity through the promotion of the off-farm sector. He reiterated that collectivising artisans into OFPOs not only preserves the rich cultural heritage of Kashmiri handicrafts like the Kani shawl but also ensures sustainable livelihood generation and institutional credit linkage for grassroots communities.
