LAC CLUSTER MUZAFFARPUR JOURNEY-:
LAC cluster Muzaffarpur is the one of the SFURTI cluster located at Keshopur in Muzaffarpur district of Bihar.It has been approved in the 41th SSC under the Nodal agency Council of Handicrafts corporation of India and the technical agency All India Parivartan Seva Samiti.This cluster came into existence in March 2022 and this cluster deals in LAC bangles and other decorative items.This cluster has a total 829 artisans at different nearby villages from cluster.
On 9th Feb 2022 the day on which the cluster get the approval from the Nodal Agency and the tender for CFC construction was published in the newspaper on 4th March 2022 then the meeting for procurement committee held on 25th March 2022 where the L1 Balendra Prasad having the lowest bid for common facility center construction got the contract.
In the Subsequent slides the work done and cluster progress will be shown. Real Scholar
Society is currently working as implementing agency on SFURTI Project under the aegis of Ministry of small and medium enterprise.SFURTI is an acronym stands for Scheme of fund regeneration of traditional industry. It was launched in 2005 in a view to organize traditional industries and artisans into clusters to make them competitive and provide support for their long term sustainability and employment.
In 2022 RSS got its cluster namely Lac cluster Muzaffarpur.
About SFURTI SCHEME-The government had launched the Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI) back in 2005 which was last revamped in September 2022 to promote cluster development for MSMEs in traditional industries. The scheme intends to bring together enterprises in the khadi industry, village industry (such as cottage industry, medicinal plants Industry, bee-keeping, agro based & food processing industry, polymer and chemical based industry, fiber industry, textile industry, etc) and coir industry as collectives or clusters and give required support for growth. Here’s how the scheme benefits clusters and eventually artisans through multiple levels of support:The scheme has given a new dimension to product manufacturing and the market of handmade artwork. The government has made sure that India’s rich ancient art and craft culture thrives with SFURTI.
The assistance in the form of CFCs and skill training have given hopes to artisans living in rural India. Now they have a chance to refine their skills using industry standards, find linkages to the market and meet the demands of global handicraft and handloom products.
The story of Lac cluster is also the same here also we have engaged 829 artisans who are making lac products lac bangles are a special type of bangles which are speacialised in the northern part of Bihar and has a specialisation here in Muzaffarpur,the peripheral villagfe artisans due to lack of finance,infrastructure were there in allied works of agriculture but now due to have the opening of this cluster it provides multi faceted advantage to the artisans especially helping them to increase their income and it provides eternal strength to awomen as earlier they were have to be dependent on their spouse for any work now they are free they can now send their off springs to a better place for education and have a good life.The same
happens with the male artisans also now they don’t have to migrate to Jaipur ,Kolkata for jobs even not to MUzaffarpur a local town which is 35 km from their village now this cluster is providing jobs within a periphery of 5km.Earlier they were enagaged in Bela industrial area for job works but they are earning here only. The scheme aims to benefit clusters through a focus on physical infrastructure creation, technology upgradation, training, product development, innovation, design interventions, marketability, improved packaging and marketing infrastructure of the business with the aim to improve artisanal income, according to the latest scheme guidelines. Hard interventions are referred to the creation of common facility centres (CFCs) and worksheds, procurement of machineries, working capital and raw material bank, tools and technological up-gradation such as charkha upgradation, tool-kit distribution, etc., warehousing facility and training centre. Likewise, activities considered as soft interventions for developing a cluster are general awareness, counselling, motivation and trust building; skill development and capacity building; machine handling and maintenance training; exposure visits; market promotion initiatives; design and product development; participation in seminars, workshops, etc. Lastly, thematic interventions are provided at a sector level which includes several clusters belonging to that cluster. These interventions are brand building and promotion campaigns, new media marketing; e-commerce initiatives, research & development initiatives and technological upgradation of similar group of clusters based on performance, etc.I would like to mention here the story of one of our artisan how her life got changed after been into this SFURTI scheme and working in the lac cluster
When we went their to get their feedbacks from them the all whole group were immense happy and they told that they did not have a proper place where they could earn but due to establishment of Lac cluster Muzaffarpur which is located in their village only they can do and earn according to their skill set and the whole group from their village will get the job together so they are more happy by this also.Mala Devi told that earlier she and her entire group has to do the work of marginal labour and to support their family where neither the work is n perennial nor the earning but now after joining this project will definitely implicate positive impact in their life.
I would like to tell you about story of Mala devi a native of Adhwara village of Rampur Mani panchayat of Sakra block of Muzaffarpur District.She is a housewife but she also act as a marginal labour and support his family in running their livelihood.After learning the skill of making lac bangles few year back she has a hope that now her condition would be ameliorate but due to lack of infrastructure and capital she was not getting any proper place where she can use her skill set and can earn his livelihood while after the inception of SFURTI project in her block she has a ray of hope she requested the Team Lac cluster Muzaffarpur that her SHG naming”Rajnigandha” has 30 women artisans who knew to make bangles but due to inadequacy and lack of proper practice they all are now forgetting it gradually hence after her request and watching the viability we decided to start our first skill up gradation batch their and they all did tremendously well as per the feedback we got from our resource person
PICTURES of the journey from inception to till now-:
Above picture showing our endeavor before our construction of CFC for our artisans by Md Asif Eqbal our esteemed Director and Deputy Director COHANDS by distributing tool kits.
Our artisan Gulam server participated in the mela conducted by Deputy
Director Handicrafts Ministry of Textiles Government of India at Aurangabad Bihar where we exhibited our lac products for sale.
This all was our journey from inception to till now in the end of year 2023 the 20 months journey starting from project related process to till now in the 2floor CFC consisting everything needed for a artisan to work in a good ambience to enhance their capabilities and earn their livelihood. The diligence endeavor shown here by each and every one especially our esteemed director Md. Asif Equbal is really tremendous and his support in every kith and kin is really a blessing. Apart from that we would also like to thank Technical agency AIPSS and the support from Nodal Agency NCHHD is also a blessing for us. At the end we thank every body who is anyhow enaged in any process of our in running this project SFURTI and our team Lac cluster Muzaffarpur pays a strong allegiance towards them. Final Picture of Our CFC
