Ecodarsini, the popular brand for eco-friendly jewellery, accessories and décor made up of bamboo started by Green Queen of Odisha Priyadarsini Das, in collaboration with SPARSH Social Foundation of JK CSR under the leadership of Prof Prafulla Kumar Dhal organised a training programme for 25 tribal girls from March 18 to 25 in Karlakona Panchayat of Rayagada district.
This is the second such training project on bamboo-jewellery after writing a national success story of another 25 Kondh tribal girls in the Badachandili village of Rayagada in 2021. The tribal girls from villages of Karlakona and Anguru in the Karlakona Panchayat showcased their jewellery after the training programme was over.
The girls showcased necklaces, earrings, bangles, hairclips, hair sticks, etc made up of local bamboo based on the concept of “Farm to Fashion”.
The products earlier made by the tribal girls from Badachandili are now being sold in multiple platforms ranging from Rayagada Railway Station under “One Station One Product” scheme, in Rural Mart, in Ekamra Haat, in Adivasi Melas, in Tribe India platform and in USA, EU and Canada. The girls of Karlakona are also enthusiastically looking forward to repeating the story of Badachandili.
Policy analyst Prof Kamala Kanta Dash from Sri Sri University emphasized how the innovations in bamboo jewellery introduced by Ecodarsini is not just expanding the concept of “Farm to Fashion”, it is also strengthening Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s campaigns like “Vocal for Local” and “Atmanirbhar Bharat” and thereby promoting a new concept of Green Footprint to replace Carbon Footprint. Prof Dash strongly feels that when India is hosting the G20 this year, works like this must be showcased and appreciated to promote Green Skills for empowering tribal and rural women.