A Preliminary Study on Popularizing Indian Handicrafts Using Internet Technology – A Bengal Specific Study

Abstract

The handicraft sector is unorganized and it is the second-largest employment generating sector in India after agriculture. The majority of the artisans belong to the socially and economically backward section of the society. So working towards identifying the issues being faced by this sector and addressing them will improve the socioeconomic condition of the craftspeople. The present study has tried to list the major issues plaguing the Indian handicraft sector and the artisans. Qualitative content analysis has been adopted to capture the empirical observations and to decipher the different variables impacting the artisans and the sector. The data for the analysis was collected through in-depth interviews of forty-five artisans from different parts of Bengal. Based on the findings, the paper has conceptualized a model, with internet technology being the enabler, addressing the identified constraints to improve the socioeconomic condition of the artisans so that they move towards having a sustainable livelihood