New Delhi, April 21 (IANS) The sales of Khadi and Village Industries have registered a five-fold jump from Rs 31,154.19 crore in 2013-14 to an all-time high of Rs 1,70,551.37 crore in the financial year 2024-25, the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) Chairman, Manoj Kumar, said on Monday.

He further stated that while the production of Khadi and Village Industry goods was Rs 26,109.07 crore in the financial year 2013-14, it increased nearly four times to Rs 116,599.75 crore in the financial year 2024-25.

Speaking at a press conference, he said that the unprecedented growth has also been observed in the production of Khadi clothes in the last 11 years. While the production of Khadi clothes was Rs 811.08 crore in the financial year 2013-14, it increased increased four and a half times (366 per cent) to Rs 3,783.36 crore in the financial year 2024-25, which is the best performance till date.

There has also been a tremendous jump in the sales of Khadi clothes. While the sale was Rs 1,081.04 crore in the financial year 2013-14, it increased by about six and a half times to Rs 7,145.61 crore in the financial year 2024-25, he pointed out.

“The promotion of Khadi by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from a larger platform has had a huge impact on the sale of Khadi clothes,” he said.

Speaking on the objective of KVIC, he said the major objective is to provide maximum employment opportunities in rural areas.

In this area too, KVIC has set a record in the last 11 years. While the cumulative employment was 1.3 crore in the financial year 2013-14, it rose to 1.94 crore in 2024-25 with an increase of 49.23 per cent.

Besides, there has been an unprecedented increase in the business of Khadi and Village Industries Bhawan, New Delhi. While the business of Bhavan was Rs 51.02 crore in the financial year 2013-14, it increased by almost two times and reached Rs 110.01 crore in the financial year 2024-25 with a jump of 115 per cent, Kumar mentioned.

He further highlighted that since the launch of the Pradhan Mantri Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) scheme, a total of 10,181,85 units have been established, for which the government has distributed margin money subsidy of Rs 27,166.07 crore against a loan of Rs 73,348.39 crore. So far, 90,04,541 people are employed through PMEGP.

With the aim of providing employment to a maximum number of people in rural areas under the Gramodyog Vikas Yojana Scheme, KVIC has more than doubled the budget of Rs 25.65 crore in the financial year 2021-22 to Rs 60 crore in the financial year 2025-26.

So far, 39,244 electric pottery wheels, 2,270,49 bee boxes and honey colonies, 2,344 automatic and pedal-operated incense stick manufacturing machines, 7,735 footwear manufacturing and repairing toolkits, 964 paper plate and dona manufacturing machines, 3,494 AC, mobile, sewing, electrician, plumber toolkits, 4,555 turnwood, wastewood craft, wooden toy making machines as well as 2,367 palm jaggery, oil ghani and tamarind processing machines have been distributed under the Gramodyog Vikas Yojana Scheme.

“If we talk about the last three financial years, a total of 22,284 machines and equipment were distributed in the year 2022-23, 29,854 in the financial year 2023-24 and the highest 37,218 machines and equipment in the financial year 2024-25,” Kumar said.

Under the Gramodyog Vikas Yojana, KVIC has made a significant contribution in the creation of a self-reliant India by distributing a total of 2,877,52 machines, toolkits and equipment so far.

Speaking on significant contribution towards women empowerment he further said that in the last 10 years, 7,43,904 trainees have been trained through 18 departmental and 17 non-departmental training centres of KVIC, out of which 57.45 per cent -- 4,27,394 -- are women. Apart from this, 80 per cent of the five lakh Khadi artisans are also women.

Besides, in the last 11 years, the wages of Khadi artisans has been increased by 275 per cent while in the last three years, it has been increased by 100 per cent, he added.