Government eyes MoUs, plans exhibitions abroad to promote khadi

The government is eyeing agreements with various countries to promote khadi overseas and plans to hold exhibitions abroad to showcase the indigenous fabric, official sources said.
“We are now trying to get into specific memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with various countries and also thinking in terms of khadi fairs in select nations,” a top official in the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) ministry said.
Moreover, the government, through the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), is also looking to facilitate the signing of MoUs between Indian exporters and overseas importers to boost the outward shipments of khadi garments, another official said.
The KVIC under the MSME ministry is also in talks with the industry associations abroad to open franchisee outlets, where khadi products sourced from different parts of India would be on sale, the sources said.
Back home, the MSME ministry is looking at roping in export promotion clusters to boost outward shipments of khadi products, officials said.
Prime minister Narendra Modi earlier in his radio programme Mann Ki Baat said that khadi has become a means of transformation, while highlighting that the sales of khadi products had recorded a 90 per cent increase during last Diwali season.