Himachal Government to organise Him Mahotsav in Delhi from December 17

Shimla, December 13

The Himachal Government will organise the Him Mahotsav in New Delhi from December 16 to 30 to showcase the state’s rich crafts, handloom and cuisines and provide a marketing platform for them.

Industries Minister Harshwardhan Chauhan, while addressing mediapersons here today, said that Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu would inaugurate the mahotsav on December 17. “The main objective of holding the mahotsav is to provide a platform to artisans and craftsmen to showcase their talent and products at the national and international levels and market them,” he added.

Chauhan said, “Our motto will be to showcase Himahcal’s culture, craft and cuisine by way of a fashion show in the national capital. Artisans have been roped in to showcase the traditional Himachali clothing with the help of fashion designers to popularise these.”

He said that Him Craft would be the nodal department for the mahotsav while the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) and the Rural Development Department would be partners. He added that there was an immense scope for popularising Himachal’s crafts. Him Craft had clocked the highest sales of Rs 2.50 crore among all stalls put up during the G20 Summit in New Delhi earlier this year.

Chauhan said tourism had taken a severe hit due to the Covid pandemic and the mahotsav was an attempt to help artisans and craftsmen to find markets and showcase their unique talents. He added that the MPs and senior officers posted in New Delhi had been invited to the event.

He said that the Himachal Handloom and Handicrafts Corporation had been rechristened as Him Craft and given a logo. “We will provide free of cost stalls to 60 artisans and self-help groups so that Himachal’s naati, crafts like Chamba Rumal, Kullu and Kinnaur shawls and Kangra miniature paintings can be showcased,” he added.