On his first day in this region, he distributed 300 Bee-Boxes with equipment and bee colonies as part of the Honey Mission programme implemented by KVIC, and he inaugurated the Electric Potter's Wheel training programme for skill upgradation of people engaged in potter's work as part of Gramodyog Vikas Yojana, in which about 40 trainees are participating at Malavalli.
In his address to the participants on this occasion, Manoj Kumar stated that KVIC is playing a critical role in creating employment opportunities for youth, particularly women, in villages and hilly border areas as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Self-reliant India' vision. This is also leading to self-sufficiency in lakhs of spinners through self-respect and meeting their family's daily needs while spinning on charkhas.
Chairman KVIC also stated that through its various efforts, KVIC is helping to create more job opportunities in the country. He stated that distributing bee-boxes, machines, and bee colonies to beneficiaries who have been trained in beekeeping will also create new employment opportunities.
He also emphasised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of making the country's youth self-sufficient by establishing small and medium-sized businesses and becoming 'job providers' rather than job seekers.
Manoj Kumar discussed the process of establishing businesses in the country through PMEGP units. The maximum cost for setting up a unit in the manufacturing sector has also been increased by the Government of India from Rs. 25 lakhs to Rs. 50 lakhs, which will encourage the establishment of new enterprises under the PMEGP scheme, he added.
The Chairman noted that in areas such as Malavalli and other parts of the country, Project RE-HAB has been implemented, and beehives have been placed on regular elephant routes, acting as floodgates and preventing human deaths from elephant attacks. This has yielded positive results.
During the previous fiscal year, KVIC distributed 800 bee-boxes, equipment, and bee colonies to 80 beekeepers through the "Honey Mission" programme in the state of Karnataka.
In addition, the KVIC provided 100 electric wheels to potters through the "Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana" and 201 tool kits to trained tannery-artisans through the Leather Industry Programme. Under the PMEGP scheme, 5864 units were established, providing 46,912 people with employment opportunities and a subsidy of approximately Rs 157.74 crore.
