Rajya Sabha MP demands crafts village on Mysuru expressway

BJP MP Lahar Singh Siroya on Monday raised concerns about the future of about 3,000 toy artisans of Channapatna in the Rajya Sabha and urged the Centre to develop ‘Crafts Village’ on the lines of ‘Delhi Haat’ on the Bengaluru-Mysuru 10 lane-lane expressway.

These Crafts Villages can come up on the vacant lands along the expressway and provide space for Channapatna artisans to showcase and sell their toys & handicrafts.

He pointed out that once the highway is ready in 2-3 months, with its several by-passes, majority of users will skip several towns along the route, such as Bidadi, Maddur, Ramanagaram - famous for its cuisines such as Bidadi Thatte Idli, Maddur Vada - and Channapatna, famous for its hand-crafted wooden toys and handicraft.


Singh also wrote to Union Minister for Highways and Road Transport Nitin Gadkari on this issue and offered to coordinate with Highways ministry, state government, and local elected representatives to ensure the idea of Crafts Village becomes a reality.