Celebrating craft, culture and women’s enterprise
Visakhapatnam: The ‘Saras’ arts exhibition opened at Andhra University’s Engineering College grounds here on Monday, attracting visitors eager to explore the charms of rural products and enterprises led by women.
This year’s edition features around 600 women from across Andhra Pradesh, presenting their products through 250 self-help group stalls. From handloom sarees and natural goods to homemade food items and traditional crafts, the stalls attracted a steady stream of visitors.
Bringing rural artisans, self-help groups, and traditional craft clusters from other parts of the country too under one umbrella, the fair encourages grassroots-level entrepreneurship. It showcases the creative strength and economic resilience of rural communities.
Handicrafts, handlooms, organic products and regional delicacies filled the venue with colour and activity on the opening day.
While participation from northern states appeared limited on the first day, officials said several groups were expected to arrive soon.
The All India DWCRA Bazaar, organised by the DRDA and SERP, was formally inaugurated by MSME and SERP minister, Kondapalli Srinivas. Vizag East MLA Velagapudi Ramakrishna Babu, district collector Harendhira Prasad and some other officials were also present.
Minister Srinivas said exhibitions like Saras provided stronger marketing platforms for products made by women in self-help groups. The recent Vizianagaram exhibition generated business worth Rs 12 crore. "After many years, we are holding the Saras exhibition in Visakhapatnam. I saw happiness on the faces of the women here today,” he said.
The minister highlighted efforts to support women’s economic empowerment through bank loans, micro-industry support, district-level clusters with a Rs 5-crore budget each, and a Rs 10-crore Common Facility Centre.
Vizag East MLA Velagapudi Ramakrishna Babu praised the scale of participation, noting that the establishment of women’s self-help groups in 1995 was a transformative step. He expressed hope that the Visakhapatnam exhibition would surpass the business achieved in Vizianagaram.
