The Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, Mr. Narendra Modi inaugurated the ‘PM Vishwakarma Exhibition’ which was held on 20th September 2024 at Wardha, Maharashtra in which FDDI, along with LSSC participated as an exhibitor.
The exhibition which was held from 20th – 22nd September 2024 was organized marking one year of progress under PM Vishwakarma Programme. The scheme was launched by Hon’ble Prime Minister – Mr. Narendra Modi on 17th September 2023 at Yashobhoomi, Dwarka, New Delhi, to support and uplift India’s traditional artisans, known as ‘Vishwakarma’s.’ It focuses on preserving and promoting the skills of artisans in 18 traditional trades, including blacksmithing, carpentry, and shoemaking.
During the inauguration ceremony, the Hon’ble Governor of Maharashtra - Mr. C P Radhakrishnan, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Maharashtra – Mr. Eknath Shinde, Hon’ble Union Minister for Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises – Mr. Jitan Ram Manjhi, Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship – Mr. Jayant Chaudhary, and Hon’ble Deputy Chief Ministers of Maharashtra – Mr. Devendra Fadnavis and Mr. Ajit Pawar were present.
Hon’ble Prime Minister visited FDDI stall which was jointly organized by LSSC under Leather trade as a part of modern skill training center, latest advance machinery section and met with artisan/beneficiaries of Kolhapur cluster and Mojari clusters at the stall.
Faculty from School of Footwear Design and Production of FDDI namely, Mr. Prashant Kumar Saxena, Dr. Pankaj Dubey and Mr. Shriganesh Chaure participated at the ‘Craft Exhibition’ and displayed a modern setup of advance machineries of virtual 3D Modeling lab. The theme of stall represented a journey from traditional footwear making to the advance modern technology.
3D Software, 3D printing Technique, 3D Foot Scanning, 3D Samples and Computerized Pattern Making were a point of attractions for dignitaries.
Hon’ble Prime Minister drew attention to the large-scale and unprecedented collaborations of different departments to make PM Vishwakarma a success and informed that more than 700 districts, 2.5 lakh gram panchayats, 5000 urban local units are giving momentum to the scheme.
Skill training and upgradation have been provided to more than 8 lakh artisans and craftsmen with the introduction of modern machinery and digital tools. More than 60,000 people have received skill training in Maharashtra alone.
