Dr Rakesh Kumar felicitated at BIMTECH for exemplary achievements in Handicraft and exports

New Delhi (India), 21st March 2023: Dr. Rakesh Kumar Sharma, famously known as the ‘Handicrafts Man of India’ was honoured by the prominent citizens of Gautam Buddh Nagar at the Birla Institute of Management and Technology, Greater Noida in a ceremony jointly organised by Ten News.

The felicitation took place on Monday and it was a way to show respect and gratitude towards Dr Kumar, who has installed Greater Noida on the world map of expos through his contribution.

Dr Rakesh Kumar Sharma, is the Director-General of the Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts (EPCH) and Chairman, India Exposition Mart Limited (IEML) Greater Noida. He was recently awarded with an honorary doctorate by CM Yogi Adityanath in Moradabad for his exemplary contribution to society.

A philanthropist and stalwart of the export industry, Dr Sharma has been encouraging and assisting thousands of exporters of handicrafts, artisans and traders while providing the district a new identity through India Expo Mart.

In a conversation with Ten News, Dr. Rakesh expressed his gratitude and also placed faith in the future and the ever expanding Handicrafts sector. He said that Indian artisans and entrepreneurs have a hidden potential which is yet to be discovered by people around the world.

He also praised the Prime Minister and appreciated his vision of making India a $5 trillion economy. Simultaneously, he also lauded the Chief Minister and the Government of Uttar Pradesh and pledged the help of handicrafts sector in their aim to contribute $1 trillion to this vision.

Dr Rakesh when questioned about how the Handicrafts sector would contribute in the economy, replied that the sector has immense potential and would see a ‘quantum jump’ in its growth which would not only have monetary benefits but would also aid in generating employment.

He added that the coming years would be exceptionally important as the Government is serious about aiding the sector and thus help the artisans and small businesses. He praised the UP government for their initiative to aid women from all 75 districts of the state in their endeavours and also commended the CM for announcing the UP International Trade Show that would take place from September 21 -25 in Greater Noida.

He said that such trade shows and events provide a single-sourcing platform for these artisans and small entrepreneurs which was earlier not available and provides them with an opportunity to sell their products.

The conversation further steered to the direction of the seven Northeastern states of the country and their contribution in the Handicrafts trade. Dr Rakesh said that the seven states along with Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Sikkim are a great source of skills and craftsmanship.

He said that the EPCH is helping all the eleven states in produce development, design development and marketing. He said that the institution was woking from the grass-root level to help artisans from weaker sections of the society.

Dr. Rakesh briefly touched on the topic of Foreign Direct Investment( FDI), Swadeshi and the Investor summits. He said that there is a matchmaking process between the investor and the manufacturer through such summits and after matching the compatibility, availability and demand between the two parties, investments are received and henceforth the products are delivered.

Concluding the conversation, Dr. Rakesh Kumar expressed his thoughts on a statement made by PM Modi where he asked every single brand to become the ‘Brand Ambassador of India’. Dr. Rakesh said that all traders and artisans must understand that the quality, sustainability, designs and products manufactured by them are the image of the country. Hence to sustain the image of the country they must sustain the quality of their products.