Shri Ajay Shankar Memorial Awards Distribution by Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Textiles(IC) on 22.2.2015 during IHGF (Spring) 2015
SHRI SANTOSH KUMAR GANGWAR, HON’BLE UNION MINISTER OF STATE FOR TEXTILES (IC) GIVES AWAY AJAY SHANKAR MEMORIAL AWARDS TO BEST STANDS AS IHGF DELHI FAIR ATTRACTS FOREIGN BUYERS IN LARGE NUMBER
Greater Noida – February 22, 2015 – Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Textiles (IC), gave away the prestigious Ajay Shankar Memorial Awards for the best display of stands in various categories at the 39th edition of the Indian Handicrafts & Gifts Fair (Spring) 2015 today.Shri Sanjay Kumar, IAS, Special Secretary, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh, Shri Vinod Johari, President of IHGF (Spring), Vice Presidents Shri Shahnawaz Khan and Shri Vishal Bohra, Shri Rakesh Kumar, Chairman of India Expo Centre and Mart & Executive Director – EPCH and Shri Lekhraj Maheshwari, Chairman- EPCH were present during distribution of awards.
The Ajay Shankar Memorial Awards were instituted in the memory of late Shri Ajay Shankar, former Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) who was one of the major motivators for establishing this fair. Awards are conferred in six product categories. In Houseware Decorative & Gifts Gold Award was won by Shri Atul Agarwal of M/s Kish Handicrafts Pvt. Ltd, Noida ,Silver Award won by Ms. Chayan Bhasin of This & That, Jaipur , Bronze award won by Shri Aminesh Mehra of Amit Exports, Agra.
In Home Textiles, Furnishings & Floor Coverings Gold Award was won by Shri Ashish Sharma of M/s Sharda Exports, Noida, Silver award won by Shri Somendra Gupta of M/s Somendra Textiles, Jaipur and Bronze award won by Ms. Priyanka Mishra of M/s Venus Designs, Mumbai. In Fashion Jewellery Accessories & Bags Gold Award was won by Shri J. K. Daniel of M/s The East India Natural Goods Co. Kolkata, Silver Award was won by Ms. Neetu Barathi & Shri Chirag Choudhary of M/s LA Diva Jewels, Jaipur and Bronze Award was won by Shri Shameem Ahamad of M/s LustreImpex, Delh.
In Christmas Decorations, Candles & Incense Sticks Gold Award was won by Shri Naved Ur Rehman of M/s Zedsons, Moradabad, Silver Award was won by Mrs. Savina Sharan M/s Artifacts Inda, New Delhi and Bronze Award was won by Shri Vijay Sethi of M/s Sethi Handicrafts, Delhi. In Furniture & Home Accessories Gold Award was won by Shri Vikas Jain of J.C. Antiques & Crafts, Jaipur, Silver Award was won by Shri Khemchand Khatri of M/s Khemchand Handicrafts, Jodhpur and Bronze Award was won by Shri Himanshu Ranga of M/s Latiyal Handicrafts Pvt. Ltd, Jodhpur and in Lamps & Lighting Products Gold Award was won by Shri Mohammed Abdullah of Zakaria Shahid Industries Moradabad, Silver Award was won by Ms.Vrishti and Shri Abdullah of M/s Artigianale Creations, Ghaziabad and Bronze Award was won by Shri Shivendra Kumar Punia of M/s Daksh Handicrafts Pvt. Ltd., Jaipur.
In addition to handicrafts exporters, two buyers Mr. Ian Snow of Ian Show Limited, UK and Mr.Bert De Mey of Bertrend The Netherlands were also felicitated for their continuous support to Indian Handicrafts & Gifts fair. While giving away the awards Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Textiles (I/C) congratulated all the awardees for receiving the awards and appreciated their excellent workmanship. He further said that Handicrafts sector is the second largest sector after agriculture and Government has plan to give boost to this sector. The Hon’ble Minister informed the gathering that Ministry of Textiles has urged the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India to attach MGNREGA with the Handicrafts sector so that artisans and craft persons can be directly benefitted and their conditions of livelihood can be improved. He said that while there’s strong competition from neighbouring countries including China, the Indian Handicrafts sector has its own distinct identity and place in the world market. The Minister was of the view that Handicrafts sector is likely to receive very good support in the next budget.
Over 3800 buyers including over 900 buying agents from 60 countries) have been registered during the first two days of the show. Impressive numbers come from USA(469), Canada (141), Israel (42), Germany (215), Sweden (148), UK (230), Russia (25), Australia (146), Japan (196), China (53), Denmark (73), South Africa (72), Brazil (25) and Argentina (15).
