The One District One Product (ODOP) programme launched in January 2018 by the Government of Uttar Pradesh, is aimed at creating product-specific traditional industrial hubs across 75 districts of the state to promote traditional industries that are synonymous with the respective districts of the state. The programme covers all aspects of the product ecosystem, including value chain gaps and infrastructure gaps. The objective of the programme is to add to the income of artisans at local level and generate employment thus preventing outmigration. Before the ODOP programme, the traditional MSME clusters of Uttar Pradesh were facing challenges such as lack of new markets, innovation & product diversification, dependency on middlemen, use of outdated tools and methods and lack of technological innovation and adoption, and the traditional crafts were losing skilled manpower to other unskilled pursuits. To understand and address these challenges, a dedicated cell was created under MSME department of the state. Based on findings of the baseline surveys done for ODOP products of each district and feedback from the District Industry and Enterprise Promotion Committee (DIEPCs), four basic schemes were implemented to address common challenges faced by the traditional artisans and handicraft persons:.. Read More