“Exposure Tour for the Coir Artisans” Component of the "Development of Coir" Scheme

What is the Exposure Tour for the Coir Artisans component?

Exposure Tour for the Coir Artisans is one of the components of the Development of Coir scheme run by the Department of Industries and Commerce, Government of Puducherry, and implemented on the ground by the District Industries Centre (DIC) at Thattanchavady. The scheme is often referred to locally by the Tamil description of the parent programme, thengu naar valarchi thittam, or simply as the coir development scheme.

According to the District Industries Centre, Puducherry, the object of this component is straightforward: "for acquiring the latest techniques and innovative ideas in various coir units located in other states, the exposure tour will be conducted for the coir artisans." Puducherry is a small union territory whose coir sector sits next to the far larger coir belts of Kerala, Karnataka and southern Tamil Nadu. Those states have deeper raw fibre supply, more mechanisation and more product variety. Rather than trying to teach modern coir practice only inside Puducherry, the department physically takes its artisans to see working units elsewhere.

The parent Development of Coir scheme states its overall objective as developing coir and coir-based industry, training the rural poor to produce coir products, and generating employment through it. The exposure tour is the "see it working" element of that objective, sitting alongside six other components: Training in Coir, Advanced or High Skilled Training in Coir, Conducting of Exhibition, Grant to Coir Cluster/Society/Agency, Grant of Margin Money for Availing Capital Loan, and the Entrepreneurship Development Programme.

Who is eligible for the coir exposure tour?

You can be sponsored if:

• You are a coir artisan working in the Union Territory of Puducherry, that is, in the Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe or Yanam regions.
• You are engaged in coir rope making, coir mat making, coir fibre processing or the manufacture of other coir products.
• You are a member of a registered coir society, cluster or agency in Puducherry, or you work in a coir unit located in the union territory.
• You have completed a Development of Coir training course run by the District Industries Centre. Past trainees are a natural pool from which the department draws for tours.

You cannot apply, or are not eligible, if:

• You are not a coir artisan. This component is not a general travel or study grant for the public, for students, or for people in other handicraft trades. Handicraft artisans have their own Exhibition and training components under the separate Development of Handicrafts scheme.
• You live and work outside Puducherry. The Development of Coir scheme applies to the union territory. Related components of the same scheme apply a residence test of being a native of Puducherry or a continuous resident for the past three years, and the department applies that reasoning to sponsorship as well.
• You are seeking a cash grant rather than a tour. This component funds an organised tour arranged by the department; the artisan cannot claim the money and travel independently.
• The department has not organised a tour in the relevant period. There is no entitlement to a tour on demand.

Because the district-level selection is discretionary, being eligible is not the same as being selected. The department picks participants for each tour based on the trade being studied and the number of seats sanctioned.

How much does the exposure tour pay?

The pattern of assistance published by the District Industries Centre has two parts.

Paid directly by the department:

• Conveyance, the cost of travelling from Puducherry to the units being visited and back.
• Accommodation during the tour.
• Fees, if any, payable to the institution or unit being visited.
• Other associated expenses of conducting the tour.

Paid to the artisan:

• Rs 150 per person per day as daily allowance for the tour period.

The daily allowance is deliberately modest because the department is already meeting travel and lodging. Rs 150 a day covers the artisan's own food and incidental spending. A five-day tour therefore yields Rs 750 in daily allowance to the participant, with the substantially larger travel and stay costs met separately by the department rather than reimbursed later out of the artisan's pocket.

This Rs 150 figure is the same rate the department uses for participants under the Conducting of Exhibition component of the coir scheme, so artisans who have taken part in a departmental coir exhibition will recognise the rate.

What documents are required?

Carry originals of every document along with the photocopies. The Cottage Industries wing verifies against originals at the counter.

How to apply for the coir artisans exposure tour

1. Visit the District Industries Centre at Thattanchavady, Puducherry 605 009, and ask for the Project Manager (Cottage Industries). This is the officer who handles all the coir and handicraft components. Go on a working day during office hours.
2. Collect the application form for the exposure tour component and ask whether a tour is currently sanctioned or being planned. Because tours run in batches, timing matters more here than for a standing entitlement scheme.
3. Fill in the form with your name, address, the coir trade you work in, your society or unit name, your Aadhaar number and your bank account details.
4. Attach the documents listed above — artisan proof, residence proof, Aadhaar copy, bank passbook copy and photographs.
5. Submit the file at the counter and obtain an acknowledgement. Note the officer's name and the date.
6. Wait for the selection list. The department shortlists participants for each sanctioned tour and informs them of the dates, the destination and the reporting point.
7. Join the tour and sign the attendance record each day. The daily allowance of Rs 150 per day is settled on the basis of that attendance.

Applicants in the outlying regions do not have to travel to Puducherry city to start the process. Karaikal applicants can approach the Functional Manager at the Rural Industrial Estate, Kottucherry, Karaikal 609 609, on +91-4368-266467. Yanam applicants can approach the Technical Officer at the Civil Station, Yanam 533 464, on +91-884-2321257. Mahe has a Technical Officer's office as well. In each case the file is forwarded to the Cottage Industries wing in Puducherry.

How do I check the status of my application?

There is no online tracking portal for this component. Follow up in one of three ways:

1. In person at the Cottage Industries section of the District Industries Centre, quoting the date on your acknowledgement.
2. By telephone on +91-413-2248391, the District Industries Centre's published number. The General Manager's office can also be reached on +91-413-2248987 and +91-413-2249392.
3. By email to dic.pon@nic.in, the department's published address, attaching a scan of your acknowledgement.

Ask specifically whether a tour has been sanctioned for the current financial year, because that, rather than your file, is usually what determines the wait.

Why applications get rejected, and how to fix them

• No evidence that you are a coir artisan. This is the most common problem. A verbal claim is not enough. Get a written certificate from your coir society, cluster or employer unit, or produce your DIC coir training certificate.
• Residence not established. Produce a residence certificate from the Revenue Department if your ration card or voter ID is in another state, or if you have moved recently.
• Bank account details that do not match Aadhaar. The daily allowance is paid by transfer. A name mismatch between the passbook and Aadhaar stalls payment. Correct it at the bank before submitting.
• Applying when no tour is planned. The file is not rejected so much as held. Ask the Cottage Industries wing to keep your name on the panel and check again at the start of the next financial year.
• Incomplete form. Blank bank or trade fields are sent back. Fill every field before you leave the counter.

What are the key dates?

The Development of Coir components run on the Government of Puducherry's financial year, 1 April to 31 March. Sanctions for tours, the number of participants and the budget are decided within that year. No fixed last date to apply is published for this component. The practical implication is that an artisan should register interest early in the financial year rather than waiting for an advertisement, because tours are arranged as and when the department schedules them and seats are limited.

The District Industries Centre publishes notices, circulars and tender information on dic.py.gov.in under its Notice Board, News and Circulars sections. Its scheme pages carry a "page last updated" date, which is a useful check on whether a component is still current.

How do I raise a grievance?

1. Start with the Project Manager (Cottage Industries), District Industries Centre, Thattanchavady, Puducherry 605 009, the officer who processes the file.
2. Escalate to the General Manager, District Industries Centre, on +91-413-2248987 or +91-413-2248391.
3. Escalate further 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 final departmental level is the Secretary to Government (Industries and Commerce), Chief Secretariat, Puducherry 605 001, on +91-413-2336115.
5. Written grievances can be emailed to dic.pon@nic.in, and the department's website carries a Feedback form and an RTI section.

No fee is payable at any stage of this scheme, and no intermediary is authorised to charge an artisan for a place on a departmental exposure tour.