Yogi to set up pottery hubs, replace plastic with kulhad

Lucknow: After banning polythene and plastic ware, the Yogi government will now promote the use of kulhad (clay cups) as a replacement.

The newly constituted Mati Kala Board that has been set up to promote the manufacture and use of clay ware, is now working to improvise on clay pottery, particularly kulhad, and make it more customer friendly. By promoting clay pottery, the state government also aims at wooing the Prajapati community that is involved in the pottery trade. The Prajapati population, also known as Kumhar, in UP is around 1.2 crores and the government decision to encourage pottery would directly benefit the community. The Mati Board proposal says that the state government will provide free electricity and land ‘pattas’ to potters to encourage the trade.

“The new generations in our community are slowly giving up the traditional trade and opting for other jobs because pottery is no longer economically feasible. If the government provides facilities and encourages the trade, our children will return to the family trade”, said Shiv Kumar Prajapati, a potter in Chinhat area.

The Mati Board proposal says that the state government will provide free electricity and land ‘pattas’ to potters to encourage the trade. Plans are also afoot to waive of taxes on clay ware.

The government is preparing to get the potters registered with the labour department  so that they can avail the benefits of the associated welfare schemes for labourers.

Mr Navneer Sehgal, senior IAS officer and a member of the Board said that special pottery hubs would also be established in districts which have a sizeable population of the Prajapati/ Kumhar community.

District including Azamgarh, Gorakhpur, Mirzapur and Khurja in Bulandshahr are known as hubs of pottery making in Uttar Pradesh.

The state government will also enter into an agreement with fine arts faculties in the central and state universities to ensure transfer of technology to the artisans.

Replacing plastic with earthen ware will not only be environment friendly but will also entail economic benefits to the Prajapati community.

It may be recalled that on July 15, the Yogi Adityanath government had banned the manufacture, sale and use of polythene and plastic