Prime Minister Narendra Modiinaugurated the India Toy Fair 2021 today through video conference. UnionMinister for Road Transport & Highways and Micro, Small and Medium EnterprisesNitin Gadkari and Union Minister of Textiles Smriti Irani also participated inthe event. The Toy Fair will be held from 27th February to 2nd March 2021. Morethan 1,000 exhibitors participated in the fair.
The Prime Minister interacted withtoy makers from Channapatna in Karnataka, Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, and Jaipurin Rajasthan. Through this Toy fair, the Government and the Industry shall cometogether to discuss how India can be made the next global hub for manufacturingand sourcing of toys by way of attracting investments in the sector andpromoting exports.
Addressing the event, the PrimeMinister called for bringing out the hidden potential of the toy industry inIndia and to create an identity for it as a big part of the campaign forAatmaNibhar Bharat. He added this first toy fair is not just a business oreconomic event. This program is a link to strengthen the country's age-oldculture of sports and cheer. He said this toy fair is one such platform whereone can discuss toy design, innovation, technology, Marketing and packaging andalso share their experiences. He said the world has done research on toys fromthe era of Indus Valley civilization, Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa.
The Prime Minister recalledthat in ancient times, when travelers from the world came to India, they usedto learn sports in India and used to take it along with them. He added thatchess, which is so popular in the world today, was earlier played in India as'Chaturanga or Chaduranga'. Modern Ludo was then played as 'Pachisi'. He saidin our scriptures, it was described that Bal Ram had a lot of toys. In Gokul,Gopal Krishna used to play with his friends outside the house in a balloon.Games, toys and crafts have also been engraved in our ancient temples.
The Prime Minister said toysmade here contributed to the all-round development of children. He said the wayreuse and recycling have been a part of the Indian lifestyle, it is also seenin our toys. Most Indian toys are made from natural and eco-friendly items, thecolors used in them are also natural and safe. He said these toys also connectthe mind with our history and culture and are also helpful in social mentaldevelopment and cultivation of Indian outlook. He appealed to the country’s toymanufacturers to make toys that are better for both ecology and psychology! Heasked them to use less plastic in toys, to use such things that can berecycled.
The Prime Minister remarkedthat today across the world, in every sector, Indian outlook and Indian ideasare being talked about. He added it is a specialty of Indian sports and toysthat they contain knowledge, science, entertainment and psychology. He addedwhen children learn to play with lattu, they are taught the lesson of gravityand balance in playing lattu. In the same way, a child playing with aslingshot, inadvertently starts learning basics about the potential of KineticEnergy. He said puzzle toys develop strategic thinking and problem solving.Similarly, newborns also begin to feel the circular movement by twisting androtating the arms.
The Prime Minister said thecreative toys develop the senses of the kids and give wings to theirimaginations. There is no limit to their imaginations. All they need is alittle toy that will satisfy their curiosity and awaken their creativity. Heurged the parents to play with their children because toys play a vital role inthe learning process of children. He said the parents should understand thescience of toys and the role they play in the development of children and heurged the teachers to use it in schools. He said in this direction, theGovernment has taken effective steps and brought changes through the NewNational Education Policy.
About the new nationaleducation policy the Prime Minister said it incorporates play-based andactivity-based education on a large scale. This is an education system in whichspecial attention has been paid to the development of logical and creativethinking in the children. He said in the field of toys, India has tradition andtechnology, India has concepts and competence. We can take the world backtowards eco-friendly toys, through our software engineers computer games canbring the stories of India to the world. But despite all this, today India’sshare in the $ 100 billion global toy market is very small. 85 % of the toys inthe country are sourced from abroad. He stressed the need to change thissituation.
The Prime Minister said thecountry has now graded the toy industry in 24 major sectors. The National ToyAction Plan has also been prepared. It has included 15 ministries anddepartments to make these industries competitive, countries to becomeself-reliant in toys, and India's toys also go into the world. Throughout thiscampaign, state governments have been made an equal partner in developing thetoy clusters. He said along with this efforts are made to strengthen thepossibilities of toy tourism. Toyathon-2021 was also organized to promoteIndian sports based toys and more than 7000 ideas were brainstormed.
The Prime Minister said ifthere is a demand for Made in India today, then the demand for Handmade inIndia is also increasing equally. He added today people do not only buy toys asa product but also want to connect with the experience associated with thattoy. So we have to promote Handmade in India as well.