The Union Budget 2022-23 announced the ‘One Station, One Product’ initiative on the concept of the ‘One District, One Product’ scheme. It aims to promote local products and businesses by designating the identified railway station as a promotional and sales hub for distinct local products. The whole idea is to make the local product vocal by utilizing the vast network of Indian Railways.
Under the ‘One Station, One Product’ initiative, the railway board has identified one station in each zone to implement the concept. The railway board would provide infrastructural facilities and other assistance to sell the products at station premises for its successful implementation.
Being a first-of-its-kind initiative, it is being implemented as a pilot project for a duration of 15 days which started from March 25, 2022. On the success of the pilot project, the initiative is likely to be implemented at various other railway stations.
The railway station, with a heavy footfall of passengers, has been chosen for the marketing of local products. Accordingly, Tirupati station is chosen for Kalamkari saree, wood carvings, and textiles of the region; Visakhapatnam station for wooden craft, lacquerware toys & handicraft products; Kota station for Doria Sarees; Patna station for Madhubani paintings and Nagpur station for bamboo products.
Nagpur, being centrally located witnesses a large footfall of passengers, and as many as 300+ trains pass from the station every day. As such, the railway board has selected Nagpur station as one of the 16 stations across the country and the only one in Maharashtra state.
The bamboo products made by traditional artisans and tribal communities from the Vidarbha region have been kept for display at the Nagpur station kiosk. These products depict a cultural linkage with the tribal life and livelihoods of the Vidarbha region.
One Station, One Product stall promoting bamboo products made by local artisans at Nagpur railway station on Platforms 2 & 3.
Bamboo is a gift of nature and India is blessed with the world’s second-largest bamboo resource. It has thousands of well-documented applications in daily life. Often termed ‘Green Gold’, it has tremendous potential to conserve nature, generate livelihoods, reduce poverty and boost the rural economy.
Despite having such enormous potential for both nature and society, the bamboo industry in the country is still at a nascent stage. Thus efforts are being taken on various fronts to revive the bamboo sector.
The ‘One Station, One Product’ initiative will certainly provide a major boost to local artisans for displaying and promoting their products among passengers at railway stations. The authorities have made an appeal to both sellers and buyers to make use of this opportunity and support in realizing the objective of Atma Nirbhar Bharat.