Sambalpur: A decision has been taken to set up an apparel manufacturing unit in the tribal-dominated Kuchinda sub-division of Sambalpur district. The apparel unit will provide employment to women throughout the year. It will also augment their livelihood, an official said Monday. The apparel unit will come up at Ardabahal under the Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).
It will be the first apparel industry under the scheme in Odisha and Rs 2.79 crore will be spent on the project. The Union government will bear 90 per cent of the cost. The rest will be provided by the Odisha government.
An agreement will be signed Wednesday between the Khadi and Village Industry Commission and the Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society (ORMAS) in this regard.
“A total of 250 industrial sewing machines will be installed at the unit,” said Srimanta Hota, the deputy chief executive officer of ORMAS in this town. “The project will provide employment to more than 500 women from 50 women self-help groups (WSHGs). The women, who will be provided training in sewing, will earn a minimum of Rs 8,000 per month,” Hota added,
Sambalpur District Collector Dibya Jyoti Parida and Kuchinda sub-collector Aditya Goyal have already initiated the process. The land for the project has already been identified. A target has also been set to make the unit operational by March 2023.
The ORMAS will facilitate the marketing of the apparel and contact educational institutions for making their uniforms in the unit, Hota said. “We will also take steps for export of the apparel in future,” he informed.
A body named Ujjwala Apparel Trust has been formed to run and manage the unit, Hota said.