"Conducting of Exhibitions" Component of the "Development of Coir" Scheme

What is the Conducting of Exhibitions component of the Development of Coir scheme?

Conducting of Exhibitions is a component of the Development of Coir scheme, run by the Department of Industries and Commerce, Government of Puducherry, and administered by the District Industries Centre (DIC) at Thattanchavady. The parent scheme's overall aim, stated on the department's own site, is to develop coir and coir-based industry, to train the rural poor in producing coir products, and to generate employment through it.

According to the Department of Industries and Commerce, Puducherry, this component has two objects:

1. To create awareness among the public on the usage of the variety of coir products and to find ways and means for market promotion.
2. To create more awareness among the public about coir's bio-degradability and to encourage them to buy coir products.

That second object is the more distinctive one. Coir is a natural fibre extracted from coconut husk, and Puducherry's coir products; ropes, mats, matting, geo-textiles and garden articles, compete directly against cheaper plastic and synthetic substitutes. The department's answer is not only to subsidise production but to put the product in front of buyers and market its biodegradability as the selling point. The exhibition component is the marketing arm of the coir scheme.

Locally the parent programme is known by the Tamil description of coir development, and artisans commonly refer to this component simply as the department's coir exhibition (kannaatchi, or display) participation scheme.

Who is eligible for the coir exhibition component?

You can participate if:

• You are a coir artisan or coir producer whose products are made in a coir unit. The pattern of assistance refers to moving coir products "from its industrial units to exhibition place", which anchors the benefit to someone with actual production.
• You are a local participant in Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe or Yanam. The component names local participants explicitly.
• You are an outside participant. Unusually for a state scheme, the published text covers "the participants both local and outsider" at the same Rs 150 per head per day rate, because the department wants a full and varied exhibition floor.
• You are a member of a registered coir cluster, society or agency in the union territory. These bodies also receive a separate grant of Rs 2 lakh per year for five years under the Grant to Coir Cluster/Society/Agency component.

You cannot apply, or are not eligible, if:

• You do not deal in coir products. Handicraft artisans are covered by the Exhibition component of the separate Development of Handicrafts scheme, which pays a different and higher daily allowance. Silk weavers fall under Development of Silk Industries.
• You are a trader with no production unit seeking travel and stall support. The transportation clause is framed around goods moving from an industrial unit.
• You want a cash grant not tied to an exhibition. Every element of this component, daily allowance, fare, transport, stall; is contingent on actually participating in an exhibition the department conducts or sponsors.
• No exhibition is scheduled. There is no standing entitlement; the benefit arises when the department conducts an exhibition.

What does the scheme pay?

The Department of Industries and Commerce publishes a four-part pattern of assistance for this component.

• Daily allowance of Rs 150 per head per day during the exhibition period, paid to participants both local and from outside.
• To-and-fro travelling expenses in second sleeper class on express trains, covering the journey from the production unit to the exhibition place and back.
• Actual transportation charges paid by the participant for taking coir products from the industrial unit to the exhibition place.
• A stall in the exhibition provided free of cost to the participant.

Read together, these four items mean a coir producer can exhibit at effectively zero out-of-pocket cost. The two largest real costs of exhibiting, stall rent and freight for bulky coir goods — are both removed, one by providing the stall free and the other by reimbursing transport at actuals.

The Rs 150 per head per day rate matches the daily allowance under the Exposure Tour for the Coir Artisans component of the same scheme, so the department applies a single coir-sector rate across both.

It is worth being clear about how this compares with the department's handicrafts exhibition support, because the two are frequently confused. Under the Development of Handicrafts scheme, a craftsperson participating in an exhibition receives Rs 1,000 per day in A1 cities, Rs 600 per day in other Indian cities and Rs 400 per day locally, with travel restricted to AC 3-tier train fare and economy air fare for State, National and Padmam awardees. The coir component is a separate and lower-rated benefit. Do not quote handicrafts rates in a coir application.

What documents are required?

Keep every original ticket and transporter receipt. Reimbursement of travel and transport is claim-based and receipts are the only evidence the department accepts.

How to apply for coir exhibition participation

1. Watch for the exhibition notice. The District Industries Centre announces coir exhibitions and sponsored participation through its Notice Board, News and Circulars sections on dic.py.gov.in, and through coir societies and clusters in the union territory.
2. Visit the Project Manager (Cottage Industries) at the District Industries Centre, Thattanchavady, Puducherry 605 009, on a working day during office hours, and collect the participation form.
3. Complete the form with your name, unit details, the coir products you intend to display, your Aadhaar number and your bank account details.
4. Attach the documents; artisan or unit proof, Aadhaar copy, bank passbook copy, product list and photographs, and submit the file at the counter.
5. Take an acknowledgement with the date and the receiving officer's name.
6. Attend the selection and stall allotment, where the department confirms your participation and allots stall space free of cost.
7. Take part in the exhibition and sign the daily attendance record, which is the basis on which the Rs 150 per day is calculated.
8. Submit your travel tickets and goods transport receipts after the exhibition to claim fare and actual transportation charges.

Applicants outside Puducherry city can begin at their regional office: the Functional Manager, Rural Industrial Estate, Kottucherry, Karaikal 609 609 on +91-4368-266467; the Assistant Director, Karaikal on +91-4368-265438; or the Technical Officer, Civil Station, Yanam 533 464 on +91-884-2321257. Mahe applicants approach the Technical Officer's office there. All files are routed to the Cottage Industries wing in Puducherry.

How do I check my application or claim status?

There is no online tracking for this component. Follow up by:

1. Visiting the Cottage Industries section of the District Industries Centre with your acknowledgement.
2. Calling +91-413-2248391, the District Industries Centre's published number, or the General Manager's lines on +91-413-2248987 and +91-413-2249392.
3. Emailing dic.pon@nic.in with your acknowledgement details.

For a reimbursement claim, ask specifically whether the bill has been passed and the head of account cleared, rather than whether the application was approved. The two stages move separately.

Why claims get rejected, and how to fix them

• Travel claimed above second sleeper class. The component restricts fare to second sleeper class on express trains. A first class or AC ticket will be reimbursed only up to the sleeper class fare, if at all. Book sleeper class.
• No transport receipt. Actual transportation charges are payable "paid by the participants": meaning against proof of payment. A cash payment to a lorry driver with no receipt cannot be reimbursed. Insist on a receipt or a consignment note.
• Attendance not signed. The Rs 150 per day allowance is computed from the exhibition attendance record. Missing signatures reduce the number of days paid.
• No proof of coir production. A person who cannot show a coir unit, society membership or DIC coir training certificate will not be admitted as a participant. Obtain a written certificate from your society or unit beforehand.
• Bank details mismatched with Aadhaar. Payment is by transfer; a name mismatch stalls it. Correct it at the bank before you submit.
• Products not matching the declared list. The stall allotment and transport claim are based on the declared product list. Large deviations invite queries.

What are the key dates?

The Development of Coir components operate on the Government of Puducherry's financial year, 1 April to 31 March. Exhibition sanctions, participant numbers and the budget for daily allowance, fare and transport are decided within that year. No fixed last date to apply is published for this component, because the trigger is an exhibition being conducted rather than a calendar date.

The practical advice is to register interest with the Cottage Industries wing early in the financial year and to check dic.py.gov.in, where scheme pages carry a "page last updated" date, for exhibition notices through the year. Coir exhibitions in Puducherry are frequently timed to coincide with local festival and trade seasons, when public footfall is highest.

How do I raise a grievance?

1. Begin with the Project Manager (Cottage Industries), District Industries Centre, Thattanchavady, Puducherry 605 009.
2. Escalate to the General Manager, District Industries Centre, on +91-413-2248987 or +91-413-2248391.
3. Escalate to the Director of Industries and Commerce, Directorate of Industries and Commerce, Industrial Estate, Thattanchavady, Puducherry 605 009, on +91-413-2248476, +91-413-2248168 or +91-413-2248320.
4. The departmental head is the Secretary to Government (Industries and Commerce), Chief Secretariat, Puducherry 605 001, on +91-413-2336115.
5. Written grievances can be sent to dic.pon@nic.in. The department's website also carries a Feedback form and an RTI section.

Participation is free. Stall space under this component is provided at no cost, and no person is authorised to charge a coir producer for a stall or a place in a departmental coir exhibition.