New Delhi: Meghalaya clinched the second runners-up award at the ODOP Awards 2023 event held on Wednesday at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi in what is considered a momentous achievement for the Northeast Indian state.
The event was organized by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), and aimed to celebrate and acknowledge the exceptional efforts of states, Union Territories (UTs), districts, and missions in realizing the vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) through the One District One Product (ODOP) Initiative.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma stated, "The award is a motivation for our farmers and skilled artisans, who are making efforts to get their unique products showcased on the national and international platform."
The Chief Minister attributed the success to "strategic initiatives, mission mode programs, unique brand creation, Geographic Indication (GI) tagging, and robust marketing strategies."
Commissioner and Secretary, Government of Meghalaya, Dr. Vijay Kumar D, accepted the award on behalf of the state. "This recognition is a testament to the hard work and resilience of the people of Meghalaya. We are committed to building a self-reliant India by showcasing the unique products our state has to offer."
He stressed the commitment to "fostering innovation, quality assurance, and global collaborations" for sustainable growth across various sectors.
Meghalaya's focus on building agri-value chains, ensuring quality assurance, and fostering global collaborations has enabled its ODOPs to compete on a global scale, according to Kumar.
The state actively promotes ODOP products through initiatives such as raising awareness, ensuring quality standards, improving infrastructure, specific registration processes, unique branding, introducing new technologies, conducting gap analyses, exposure visits, and capacity-building workshops. Recently, Meghalaya exported Khasi Mandarin to Dubai, establishing valuable market connections.
The Aatmanirbhar Bharat Utsav and National ODOP Awards ceremony was inaugurated by S Jaishankar, India's external affairs minister.
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