PM gives clarion call to make India a global hub for eco-friendly toys

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday gave a clarion call to toy manufacturers to use eco-friendly materials to make their products and shun the ubiquitous use of plastics which are taking the world towards an environmental disaster.</p>
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Inaugurating the first ever toy fair in the country that has brought together MNCs as and local toy-makers, the Prime Minister pointed out that India, which has a tradition of using eco-friendly materials like wood for making toys, had a negligible share in the global market of a whopping $100 billion.</p>
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“Over 85% of the toys in the Indian market are imported and this has virtually destroyed the indigenous industry,” he lamented.</p>
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<strong>Vocal for local</strong></p>
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The Prime Minister exhorted Indian toy-makers to take the big step towards self-reliance by using the fair to adopt innovative ideas and technology in order to achieve the goal of Aatamnirbhar Bharat in the sector. He said the objective for the toy industry has to be not only to go for Made in India but also Hand-made in India. There was an urgent need to go “vocal for local” in the toy industry as well, he added.</p>
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He advised the toy industry to go in for consultation with young IT professionals and startups to generate ideas to come out with new toys that would develop the creative faculties of children even as they enjoyed playing with them. These software professionals could also find ways to e-market toys to promote sales at home and abroad. </p>
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The fair, being held from 27th February to 2nd March, will provide an open market for toys, and will be used for holding panel discussions and webinars to strengthen India's toy industry. The government said the stakeholders will discuss how India can be made the next global hub for manufacturing and sourcing of toys.</p>
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"It aims to bring together all stakeholders including buyers, sellers, students, teachers, designers etc. on a virtual platform to create sustainable linkages and encourage dialogue for the overall development of the industry," according to a government statement.</p>
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<strong>Holistic development of children</strong></p>
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The Prime Minister in his speech also highlighted the fact that toys have a great role in shaping the mindset and holistic development of children. “Apart from entertaining them, toys were also a way of making them realise their dreams and aspirations. A child playing with a toy stethoscope, for instance, assumes he is a doctor while one playing with a rocket fulfils his dream of going into outer space,’’ he remarked.</p>
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<strong>Quality factor</strong></p>
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The Prime Minister also said that quality of toys was very important and there was a need to understand the world market. He pointed out that previous governments had not understood the importance of the $100 billion toy industry and it was only now that an action plan was being drawn up to promote the sector in a big way.</p>
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He said the state governments were also being asked to play a role in the development of toy clusters which will make India a hub for toy manufacturing.</p>
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The Prime Minister also underlined the fact that India had a rich heritage of toys which date back to the ancient days of Mohenjo-daro and Harappa. “In fact even games like chess and ludo were played in India since ancient times,” he added.</p>
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Over 1,000 exhibitors from all states and union territories will showcase their toys at the fair, which can be bought online. All the toys are made in India and include traditional as well as modern toys such as electronic toys, plush toys, puzzles and games.</p>