BHUBANESWAR: Odisha is a state of rich cultural heritage. The state is also known as Utkal. Utkal means the land of excellence in art. The name is bestowed upon the state as it is a treasure trove of exquisite handicrafts and traditional art forms.
The Sun Temple of Konark, Shree Jagannath Temple of Puri, Mukteswar and Rajarani Temple of Bhubaneswar and Khiching temple of Mayurbhanj stand as symbol of excellent craftsmanship and created a distinct uniqueness across the Globe.
Artisans of the state have retained the age old seasoned traditional values deeply blended with beauty and utility. Census of handicraft artisans of the state was conducted in the year 2001-02 and 1, 29, 958 artisans were identified.
Keeping in view the present working status of the artisans, the survey work is being taken up by the Handloom, Textile and Handicrafts Department, Odisha, Bhubaneswar. The survey work will be segmented based on region and craft.
It will help to plan various developmental programmes for the handicraft sector. The survey work will be conducted in five districts i.e Keonjhar, Balasore, Bhadrak, Subarnpur and Sambalpur in the first phase and rest of the districts will be covered in next two phases.
Arrangement has been made for a toll free no (1800-345-7163) for enquiry of the handicrafts artisans and enumerators to expedite the survey work.
The survey work will be done by the enumerators through a GIS enabled mobile app developed by ORSAC. This app has been named as “KRUTI” (Karigar Record for Upliftment And Tracking of Information).
The enumeration in the field is being taken up with the assistance of DE&S. The enumerators will be imparted requisite training for taking up the enumeration.
All handicraft artisans are requested to extend all sorts of cooperation to the enumerators and help for successful completion of the survey work.