The Government of Goa is providing skill training and toolkits delivered at home to support its artisan community under the PM Vishwakarma Scheme
Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant highlighted that 18,575 artisans across Goa have benefited so far from the Centre’s PM Vishwakarma Scheme, which supports traditional artisans through training, toolkits, and financial assistance.
Speaking at an online programme on handicrafts, CM Sawant said that around 12,174 beneficiaries have completed skill training under the scheme, while 7,442 artisans have received toolkits at their homes. He added that the remaining beneficiaries are expected to receive their toolkits shortly.
Read Also: Goa’s Kunbi Weaving Legacy Continues on National Handloom Day
On the financial assistance side, around 1,000 beneficiaries in the state have secured loans totalling Rs 10 crore, a significant achievement for the scheme’s reach in Goa.
Launched by the Union government on September 17, 2023, PM Vishwakarma is a scheme for artisans and craftspeople working across 18 traditional trades, including carpenters, blacksmiths, goldsmiths, potters, cobblers, sculptors and boat makers, offering them:
- Formal recognition through a PM Vishwakarma certificate and ID card
- Basic skill training (5–7 days) and optional advanced training, with a daily stipend
- A toolkit incentive of up to Rs 15,000
- Collateral-free credit support
- Support for digital transactions and market link through e-commerce platforms
Goa became the first state to operationalise dedicated PM Vishwakarma skill training centres, launching 10 such centres, nine at government ITIs and one at a Directorate of Fisheries centre, in a phased rollout that began in early 2024.
Read Also: Goa Is Building the Team Behind Every Champion With a Sports Science Network
CM Sawant credited the Goa Handicrafts, Rural and Small Scale Industries Development Corporation for widening market access for local artisans, highlighting that more than 100 Goan artisans have participated in exhibitions across India and abroad to showcase traditional products.
For Goa, the scheme’s stated aim is twofold: sustaining traditional craft that form part of the state’s cultural heritage, and turning that heritage into a source of livelihood through better tools, skills and access to financial support and markets.