BAIHATA CHARIALI, June 22 - At a time when thousands of youths have come back to their villages in Assam from other states leaving their sources of livelihood due to the COVID-19 induced lockdown, a registered organisation of bamboo artisans has taken up a praiseworthy step of imparting training on bamboo craft to a number of such jobless youths in a bid to generate employment avenues.
The Baredala Hasta Silpa Co-operative Society Limited (BHSCSL) under Bihdia Jajikona development block of Kamrup district is a bamboo basket making unit, where the baskets are usually used for transporting day-old poultry chicks from hatchery to rearing farms. The society also makes some other ornamental items from bamboo.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave the call of �Atma Nirbhar Bharat� to rejuvenate the falling economy, the BHSCSL has given more than 150 persons employment at their production unit.
As the number of returnees from outside is increasing day by day, the society has now sought training workshops by the Cane and Bamboo Technology Centre (CBTC) Byrnihat, under the NEC and DoNER ministry.
BHSCSL president Kanak Deka and secretary Jyotirmoy Goswami said that in August 2019, a technical training session was held under the aegis of CBTC and after the training, 25 new artisans were benefited.
As the demand for bamboo baskets is rising rapidly since hatchery units have now started again after the lockdown, the BHSCSL is hopeful that it would be able to provide jobs to returnees, if the government and other agencies like CBTC helps in making them skilled through more technical training sessions.
