New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the India Toy Fair 2021 at 11 am on Saturday via video conference. PM Modi during his address has asked toy manufacturers to use less plastic and more recyclable material.
The press release issued by the Prime Minister’s Office stated, ‘Toys play an important role in the development of a child’s brain and also help improve psychomotor and cognitive skills in children.
“We used to develop toys which helped in all-round development of a child,” said the prime minister while interacting with the toymakers.
“Toys imbibed with Indian thought helped our children get imbued in our values,” he also said.
Our relation with toys is as old as the civilisation itself. and our temples stand testimony to the rich culture of toy making in India,” he also said, adding, “Our temples stand testimony to the rich culture of toymaking in India.”
He also highlighted how toys help children develop scientific temperament. “These toys help them understand concepts like rotation etc in practical aspect,” he said.
“Our toys reflect reuse and recycling that has been a part of the Indian lifestyle. Most Indian toys are built out of natural and eco-friendly materials. The colours used in them are natural and safe.”
“I would like to appeal to the toy manufacturers of the country to build such toys that are better both for ecology and psychology. Can we make an effort to make minimal use of plastic in toys and use such material that can be recycled?” PM Modi added.
National toy action plan has been launched to make toymaking competitive and make India more self-reliant, PM Modi also said, adding,”states will have equal participation in development of toy clusters.”
During the virtual event, Modi interacted with several toy clusters from across the country. While speaking to Karnataka’s toy cluster Channapatna, which has been manufacturing toys for 200 years, Modi urged them to come up with innovative ideas to build toys for India’s toy industry to grow.
The Toy fair, Modi said, will bring together stakeholders in the sector, which will add to the effort of the industry to grow.
Aimed at providing a platform to states to develop toys reflecting the history, culture and social milieu specific to the states and also to revive traditional and indigenous toys in the lives of children, the national toy fair claims to also boost the economy by supporting local toy industry under ‘Atamnirbhar Bharat’.
The Ministry of Textiles, in collaboration with other ministries, including the Ministry of Education, has organised the virtual event with an aim to provide joyful learning to children by including them in teaching and learning as well as promoting the indigenous toy industry.
“The idea of a toy fair emerged from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Mann Ki Baat address on August 30, 2020, where he highlighted the huge potential of toys market and the opportunities that can be tapped to promote indigenous toys. In this fair, along with CCL’s toys, there will be 75 exhibition stalls of the Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL), Ministry of Education, National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT), State Council for Educational Research and Training (SCERT), along with their schools and teachers,” CCL co-ordinator Prof Manish Jain had said.
The fair will be held from February 27 to March 2, 2021. It aims to bring together all stakeholders including buyers, sellers, students, teachers, designers etc on a virtual platform to create sustainable linkages and encourage dialogue for the overall development of the industry.
Over 1000 exhibitors from across 30 states and union territories will display their products in e-commerce enabled virtual exhibition. It will showcase traditional Indian toys as well as modern toys including electronic toys, plush toys, puzzles and games.