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New Delhi : The Ministry of Commerce & Industry is organising special events and programmes throughout next week as part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ celebrations.

The Department of Commerce will observe the ‘Vanijya Saptah’ (Trade & Commerce Week) during the period September 20-26, 2021. A slew of programmes and events are being organised across the country highlighting Aatmanirbhar Bharat showcasing India as a Rising Economic Force and Green & Swachh SEZs besides handholding sessions focusing on ‘From Farm to Foreign Lands’ and exporter conclaves, ‘Vanijya Utsav’, covering all 739 districts of the country, according to a PIB release.

Inspired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call to convert each district into an export hub from the ramparts of Red Fort in his Independence Day Address on August 15, 2019, the ‘One District One Product’ (ODOP) scheme was unveiled in September, 2020, and under the directions of Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. ODOP is seen as a transformational step forward towards realising the true potential of a district, fuel economic growth, and generate employment and rural entrepreneurship, taking us to the goal of AtmaNirbhar Bharat.

During the Vanijya Utsav, to be held on September 24-26, 2021 exporter conclaves/meets will be held in more than 700 districts, including Mega events in 100 districts, organised by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) along with Export And Market Development Assistance (E&MDA), and respective State Governments. The District Export Promotion Committees (DEPCs), chaired by the District Commissioners/Collectors of respective district, will be key stakeholders in organising these conclaves. It will include 2-3 hours of handholding sessions for local exporters/entrepreneurs on foreign trade issues involving stakeholders such as the Lead Bank, local export chambers/associations and Export Promotion Councils (EPCs).

Also, five National Seminars/Exhibitions will be organised by the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) in five regions of the country, – North, South, East, West, and North-East , on the theme “Azadi and Export Promotion/Import Substitution – आत्मनिर्भरता की ओर”. During these events, the onboarding of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) on Government e-Marketplace (GeM) and in EPCs will also be completed.

Another major campaign of the ‘Vanijya Saptah’ will be the 35 Export Promotion events/exhibitions being organized on September 21-22, 2021, by all the 14 EPCs with at least one event in each State/UT showcasing India as a Rising Economic Force. The EPCs will mobilize the local exporters, manufacturers and industrial units to make Export Promotion a Jan Andolan.

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is also organising soft launch of two events namely National Single Window System and Industrial Park Rating System. The digital platform will allow investors to identify and apply for various pre-operations approvals required for commencing a business in India. This will provide end-to-end facilitation, support, including pre-investment advisory, information related to land banks, and facilitating clearances at Central and State levels. Industrial Park Rating System (IPRS) recognises best performing parks, identifying interventions, and serving as a decision support system for investors and policy makers.Industrial Park Rating System 2.0’ will widen its coverage and aim to bring in qualitative assessment further to the pilot phase.

The Industrial Corridor Programme is aimed at supplementing the efforts for realising the manufacturing potential of the country and raising its contribution to GDP. States like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh, are organising events on the progress made in the Industrial Corridor in their state.

These programmes are being organised by Dholera Industrial City Development Limited (DICDL), Gujarat, Aurangabad Industrial Township Limited (AITL), Maharashtra, DMIC Integrated Industrial Township Greater Noida Limited (IITGNL), Uttar Pradesh, CBIC Tumakuru Industrial Township Limited, Karnataka, and NICDIT Krishnapatnam Industrial City Development Limited, Andhra Pradesh, and DMIC Vikram Udyogpuri Limited (VUL), Madhya Pradesh.

DPIIT will also organise National Level Workshop with all Ministries/Departments and States/UTs for showcasing the work carried out to reduce compliance burden. The exercise is focused on three aspects, – elimination of regulatory burden in all procedures, rules, notifications, circulars, OMs etc. which add to time and cost burden without achieving any tangible improvement in governance. r

NICDC will be organising events at the ports in Kolkata, Chennai, and Mumbai, highlighting the progress, employment, and business opportunities generated on the basis of the export/import container visibility service across PAN India and Logistic Data Bank. A Virtual Investor Summit or Investor Forum will be organised by Invest India in North-East and an interaction with Private Industrial Parks.

About ten lakh plantation workers will participate in special events slated to be held across all plantations/central locations on September 26, 2021,  under the theme ‘From Farm to Foreign Lands’, being organised by the Plantation Division of the Commerce Department.

More than 250 Special Economic Zones (SEZs) will run a Swachhta campaign and tree plantation drive in their respective zone focusing on ‘Green & Swachh SEZs’ on September 23.

A National Essay Competition on the theme “Azadi and Export Promotion/Import Substitution – आत्मनिर्भरता की ओर” will also be organised on September 20 by the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) coinciding with the commencement of the Vanijya Saptah.