New Delhi, May 18 (IANS): The Cental Armed Police Force (CAPF) canteens across India will have maximum products provided by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) from June 1 among all indigenous items.
Five days after Union Home Minister Amit Shah's announcement that all CAPF canteens will sell only indigenous products from June 1, KVIC made the announcement on Monday saying it will provide these products to all CAPF canteens across the country. At present, KVIC has registered 17 products for the supply to Cental Armed Police Force (CAPF) canteens that include Khadi national flag, eatables like honey, pickles, edible oils, agarbatti, papad, amla products and cotton towels.
A list of 63 new products like Khadi clothes, woolens, cosmetics like herbal oils, shampoo, soaps, face wash, tea and coffee and others has been submitted to the CAPF canteens by KVIC to be included in the supply list at these stores.
The move will open great employment opportunities for farmers, unemployed youth and lakhs of people already engaged with cottage and village industries, the KVIC said in a statement.
India's "Swadeshi Apnao" (accept local) first big step towards becoming "Aatmanirbhar" (self-reliant) after independence came immediately after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for encouraging local products in his address to the nation last week. Shah took the lead of Modi's appeal to the people to make India self-reliant by keeping manufacturing, markets and supply chains local, and made it mandatory for all canteens and stores of paramilitary forces to sell only ‘Swadeshi' products through KVIC.
He made the announcement on May 13. As per a Ministry of Home Affairs order issued on May 15, only Indian products will be sold through the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) canteens from June 1 and these will be procured from KVIC. The decision will also impact the production and sales of KVIC which will be fulfilling the majority of supplies at these stores, says the order.
"The Khadi and Village industries Commission with 17 products has been registered with Kendriya Police Kalyan Bhandar (KPKB). Now the Ministry of Home Affairs has decided that only Swadeshi products will be sold through KPKB Bhandars with effect from June 1, 2020. In view of the above, all Master Bhandars may place their demands directly to KVIC," the order read.
KVIC Chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena lauded the decision of the Home Minister saying this would provide a big boost to the cottage and village industries sector apart from the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME)units.
"This decision will directly benefit lakhs of people engaged with manufacturing of various village industries products. With this order over 10 lakh personnel of the various paramilitary forces will be added to KVIC's consumer base."
As a goodwill gesture, the KVIC has also immediately decided to supply products to the CAPF canteens at a small margin of 3 per cent only as against the 20 per cent margin in other cases, Saxena said. There are 20 Master Bhandars of these forces across the country with annual turnover of over Rs 1,800 crore. The KVIC is likely to get a major share of the total turnover.