Aiming to be $1-trillion economy, UP asks 10 Indian embassies for space to promote ODOP

The UP government is expediting efforts to boost international reach of its flagship One District One Product (ODOP) scheme that has come to occupy a lion's share in the state's exports as it also eyes a larger target of reaching $1 trillion economy size over the next five years.

The scheme promotes traditional industries in each of the 75 districts of the state which are synonymous with the respective districts of the state. Launched in 2018, the Yogi Adityanath government counts it as one of its successes as is also evident with the centre having replicated the scheme at a national level. Last month, the scheme had got a major fillip with the PM gifting 8 ODOP products to eight different country leaders including heads of governments of US, UK, France, among others, at the G-7 Summit.

The state government has spoken to Indian embassies in ten countries including US, UK, France, Russia etc, to give them a space in the offices for the showcasing of ODOP products, ET has learnt. While the state has opened district export councils in each district, it is also making changes in the current MSME policy to enable artisans to participate in global exhibitions either virtually or physically, with the government footing the airfare and accommodation expenses in the latter case, additional chief secretary for MSME and export promotion, Navneet Sehgal told ET.

A start was made last year when forty products were showcased virtually at the Dubai Expo, Sehgal said. The government has already signed an MoU with Amazon India and Fllipkart to expand reach of the products across India and is now also working on an agreement with EBay for its sale globally. Additionally, the Abu Dhabi headquartered LuLu Group, which recently opened its first ever mall in UP in Lucknow, has also agreed to display select ODOP products at the LuLu Hypermarket in its malls across the world, Sehgal said.