Design Development Training for Master Crafts Persons Component of the Development of Handicrafts Scheme (Puducherry)

What is Design Development Training for Master Crafts Persons?

Design Development Training for Master Crafts Persons is a component of the Development of Handicrafts scheme run by the District Industries Centre, Directorate of Industries and Commerce, Government of Puducherry. The Directorate's scheme document records it as a "New component", added to the handicrafts package alongside the older training, exhibition, insurance and pension components.

The problem the component addresses is commercial rather than technical. Puducherry's traditional crafts have skilled practitioners, but products designed for an earlier market do not always sell in a current one. The scheme document states the object as enabling craftspersons "to acquire modern skill on moulding and designing of their vanishing crafts to create more marketability", and adds that the training "will also pave way for transplanting some new crafts in this U.T. from other states".

That second purpose is worth noting. The component is not only about refreshing existing crafts. It is a deliberate route for importing craft techniques from other states into Puducherry, through artisans who go out, learn, and come back practising something new.

Who is eligible for Design Development Training?

You can be sponsored if:

• You are a craftsperson or artisan of the Union Territory of Puducherry.
• You have been running a unit in your respective craft satisfactorily for more than three years. This is the substantive test and it is the one clause that defines the component's audience.
• You are literate. The scheme document specifies "any literate craftsperson".

There is no age limit and no educational qualification requirement. The scheme document says so expressly, which makes this the only handicrafts training component in Puducherry without an upper age bar; Training in Handicrafts, Training in Coir and In-Plant Training all stop at 35.

You are not eligible if:

• You have not run a craft unit for more than three years. A newly trained artisan should build the unit first, or apply to Training in Handicrafts, which requires no experience at all.
• You are not a craftsperson of this Union Territory. The component is confined to Puducherry's own artisans.
• You are illiterate, since the scheme document sets literacy as the floor.

Handicrafts societies cannot apply under this component. Institutional grants to societies are a separate component of the same scheme, carrying Rs 2 lakh a year for five years, or Rs 10 lakh a year in the case of PUDUMAI Handicrafts Artisans Society, Puducherry.

What does the scheme pay?

A sponsored craftsperson therefore receives Rs 4,000 per month in hand during the course, and does not pay the course fee, which goes directly to the institution.

The remuneration is described in the scheme document as remuneration rather than as a stipend, which fits the profile of the beneficiary. A master craftsperson attending a design course is losing production time in a running unit, and the Rs 3,000 is compensation for that loss rather than support for a student.

The travelling allowance covers second-class berth train fare to and from the training location. It is a narrower entitlement than the exhibition component of the same scheme, which allows AC 3-tier fare, and economy class air fare for State, National and Padma awardees.

How to apply for Design Development Training in Puducherry

1. Identify the design course and the institution. Because the component funds external design training, the artisan usually brings a specific course to the District Industries Centre rather than waiting for one to be advertised.
2. Collect the prospectus or admission offer showing the duration and the course fee, since both figures drive the sanction.
3. Prepare proof that you have run your craft unit for more than three years: unit registration, sales or purchase records, or the District Industries Centre's own artisan record for you.
4. Apply at the District Industries Centre, Industrial Estate, Thattanchavady, Puducherry 605009, enclosing residence proof, Aadhaar, bank passbook copy and the course documents. Karaikal artisans apply at the Rural Industrial Estate, Kottucherry 609609; Yanam and Mahe artisans at the Civil Station offices in their regions.
5. Wait for the sponsorship order, under which the District Industries Centre sanctions the course fee to the institution and the remuneration and accommodation charge to you.
6. Attend the course, keep your train tickets for settlement of the travelling allowance, and submit the completion certificate to the District Industries Centre afterwards.

When can I apply?

There is no annual window for this component. Basic Training in Handicrafts runs on a fixed cycle, advertisement in July, applications in August, training from December, but Design Development Training does not, because its period is whatever the training institution prescribes.

Approach the District Industries Centre as soon as you have identified a suitable course, and well before the institution's admission closes, so the fee sanction can issue before the course starts.

How do I check the status of my sponsorship?

Track it offline. Call the District Industries Centre on +91-413-2248987, +91-413-2248391 or +91-413-2249392, quoting the date of your application and the name of the course. Regional numbers are +91-4368-266467 for Karaikal, +91-884-2321257 for Yanam and +91-490-233235 for Mahe. The Directorate of Industries and Commerce can be reached on +91-413-2248476, 2248168 or 2248320, and by email at dic.pon@nic.in.

Because the fee goes to the institution and the remuneration to you, follow up on both separately if either is delayed.

Why do applications fail?

• The three-year unit requirement is not evidenced. Claiming long practice is not the same as showing a unit that has run satisfactorily for over three years, and this is the most common reason a file stalls.
• No prospectus or fee structure attached, leaving the sanction amount undetermined.
• Applying after the institution's admission has closed, so there is no time to sanction the fee.
• The applicant is not a craftsperson of this Union Territory.
• Travel claimed above second-class berth fare, which the component does not cover.

What else supports an established Puducherry artisan?

Design Development Training sits within a package aimed at working artisans rather than trainees:

• Exhibition support: AC 3-tier train fare, economy class air fare for State, National and Padma awardees, plus a daily allowance of Rs 1,000 per day in A1 cities, Rs 600 in other cities and Rs 400 locally, with stall rent, interior decoration and goods transport also met.
• Insurance Scheme for Artisans — cover under Janashree Bima Yojana of LIC or another suitable policy for artisans aged 18 to 60, with the premium met under the scheme.
• Monthly Grant to Old Craftspersons: Rs 5,000 a month from the completion of 60 years, and Rs 2,500 a month to the surviving spouse, where family income is within Rs 75,000 a year and the artisan has practised the craft for at least five years in the Union Territory.
• Grant to Handicrafts Societies, Rs 2 lakh per annum for five years to registered societies, and Rs 10 lakh per annum to PUDUMAI Handicrafts Artisans Society, Puducherry, for conducting exhibitions.

Where do I raise a grievance?

• District Industries Centre, Industrial Estate, Thattanchavady, Puducherry 605009 to +91-413-2248987, 2248391, 2249392
• Directorate of Industries and Commerce, same address; +91-413-2248476, 2248168, 2248320
• Email: dic.pon@nic.in
• Secretary to Government (Industries and Commerce), Chief Secretariat, Puducherry 605001 to +91-413-2336115

Sponsorship is free. The course fee is paid by the government directly to the training institution, and the remuneration reaches the craftsperson's own bank account.