IHGF Delhi Fair 2025: ‘Manthan for Greater EPCH’ Brings Together Indian Handicraft Leaders to Formulate Vision 2035

Delhi/NCR – 16th October 2025 – The 60th edition of the IHGF Delhi Fair-Autumn 2025 being held from 13th to 17th October 2025 at the India Expo Centre & Mart, Greater Noida Expressway is at full splendour with its increased patronage of overseas buyers, buying houses, buying agents and domestic volume buyers. The show continues to see busy field days with the first four days having registered buyers from almost all of India’s export markets over the world. Several new contacts are being made and old ones renewed, product lines from new suppliers and innovations from regular vendors are being considered, some orders have wrapped up and some noted for finalizing amidst post-show follow-ups.

Dr. Neeraj Khanna, Chairman, EPCH informed, “Today, ‘Manthan’ a brain storming and ideation for Greater EPCH was held. This was a high-energy interactive session organised with member exporters, buyers and other stakeholders to create an expanded EPCH ‘Vision 2035’ with focus on new markets & product categories, buyer-acquisition programs, digital services, sustainability & compliance support, logistics and finance enablement, etc. The Think Tank included me, Dr. Rakesh Kumar, Director General in the role of Chief Mentor, EPCH & Chairman IEML; Sagar Mehta, Vice Chairman, EPCH; Avdesh Agarwal, Chief Convenor, EPCH, Rajat Asthana, President IHGF Delhi Fair Autumn’25. Other industry leaders including former EPCH Chairmen namely Raj K Malhotra, O P Prahladka, Lekhraj Maheshwari, D Kumar, Arvind Vadhera participated and offered experience based valuable insights for shaping the future of EPCH and the handicraft sector as a whole.”

Dr. Rakesh Kumar, Director General in the role of Chief Mentor, EPCH & Chairman IEML, added, “This is a very critical time not just for the Indian handicrafts exports sector but for global businesses as a whole. With the right insight, learning, perseverance and strategized approach, we can steer towards stability and competence to maintain our niche in international markets. Our goal is to reach the export target of 9 bn Dollar from the current 3.9 bn dollar. Given the tenacity and experience of our trade in overcoming obstacles, we can certainly achieve this, but with the active participation of the young generation the “Cubs of EPCH” In his inspiring address he projected a multi dimensional roadmap including focus on cluster ++ module, decentralise 3 tier structure, digital enablement through expo bazaar and other online portals to achieve the goal for the success of “Greater EPCH’ in line with fulfilling the aspirations of generation next .

“Today was a power packed day with the august presence of many dignitaries from the Government of India and the Government of Uttar Pradesh,” Sagar Mehta, Vice Chairman, EPCH said and added, “Jitin Prasada, Union Minister of State for Ministry of Commerce & Industry and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, Govt. of India; and Rakesh Sachan, Cabinet Minister for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises, Khadi and Villages Industries, Sericulture Industries, Handloom and Textile, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh visited the fair and appreciated the display, commending the exhibitors and EPCH on the grand milestone edition. They also graced the Display Awards ceremony and gave away the Ajai Shankar Memorial Awards for Best Stand Design and Display for IHGF Delhi Fair-Autumn 2025. Among pioneers of the industry felicitated today was Naresh Bothra from M/s Bothra International, as pioneer of Rajasthan. Karan Patel for felicitated in the category of Next-gen Young Entrepreneur category.

Further, Avdesh Agarwal, Chief Convenor, EPCH, informed, “We have been humbled by the presence of our esteemed guests who visited the fair today. Justice Manjari Nehru Kaul, Priyadarshini Kaul and Nitya Nagu from Haryana and Punjab High Court; Mithlesh Kumar Kataria, Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha from Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh; Neelam Shami Rao, Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India; Maninderjeet Singh Bitta, Chairman All-India Anti-Terrorist Front, and former President of Indian Youth Congress; and many others visited. They interacted with the exhibitors and applauded them for excellent range of products on display.”

Rajat Asthana, President, IHGF Delhi Fair-Autumn 2025 shared, “Today’s seminar on ‘Best Industrial Practices Used by Other Competitive Markets and How to adopt Technology for Cutting Costs’ was well attended. It explored how leading export hubs can achieve success through lean workflows, standardised processes and quality at source; and how these practices can be adapted to the handicrafts sector. The industry expert address key areas such as cost leakages, rework and returns, energy efficiency, packing density, logistics and sustainability to drive business growth.”

Sharing about the Best Stand Design and Display Awards for IHGF Delhi Fair-Autumn 2025, R. K. Verma, Executive Director, EPCH added, “Based on their creative display at this fair, exhibitors were selected for the awards in 10 categories. The Ajai Shankar Memorial Awards were for categories of Lamps, lighting and accessories; Home textiles, furnishings and floor coverings; Fashion jewellery and accessories; Decorative gifts including corporate gifts; Bathroom accessories; Candle, incense sticks, potpourri medication and aromatics; Handmade paper, gift wraps and ribbon including soft toys; and Sustainable products. The P N Suri Memorial Awards were given for categories of Houseware, table and decorative products; and Furniture, furniture hardware and home accessories. These are coveted recognitions and our exhibitors, especially the next-gen and new participants in the IHGF family, look forward to their selection for these awards.