Only a few centuries ago, in pre-industrialised India , almost everything that served a purpose in daily life was made by hand using simple tools and locally available raw materials. Ranging from utilitarian products to highly decorated and complex ones, the staggering diversity was a result of the creative interplay between form and function, between […]
Why are craftspeople absent in the country’s trade policy space? I was asked this question while working on a report that analyses in some detail the effects of trade and globalisation on ‘human development’ in South East Asian countries. The report discusses at length how the lives of food growers, fisher folk, textile and garment […]
As the first article of the year, this was to have been a positive one – focusing on headway that had been made by the government in tackling some of the problems faced by craftspeople. Progress could be measured either by measuring outcomes – in this case, the living standards of the target populations – […]
A little-known survey of the tourist-centric regions of Kerala and Rajasthan* shows that tourism has an enormous impact on the incomes and livelihoods of artisans in the region. Incomes of ‘folk artists’ for example are four times higher during tourist seasons compared to their off-season incomes; higher earnings of all artisans from their proximity to […]
Background In 2006, the All India Artisans and Craftworker’s Welfare Association (AIACA), based in New Delhi, and the international NGO, Aid to Artisans (ATA), began a three year public-private partnership to implement the Artisan Enterprise Development Alliance Program (AEDAP) in India. Most handicrafts created by Indian artisans are made with the intention of being […]
The right to a livelihood is denied to millions of the world’s poorest. Among those living in abject poverty are artisans in India. Their centuries-old means of earning a living has been shattered by modernisation and industrialisation. India’s Artisans Status Report states: Today most of India’s artisans are struggling for survival. Many have given up and moved away from their traditional occupations. Others cling […]