No stone will be left unturned to provide support to toy industries, says Piyush Goyal

Assuring full support and cooperation from the Central government's side, Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday said that no stone will be left unturned to provide support to toy clusters, make business environment easier, get the environment clearances, and compliances with quality regulations.

Speaking at the India Toy Fair (TITF) 2021, Goyal announced, "Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) will established laboratories near the toy clusters for testing the quality of products."

He also assured that charges for testing will soon be reduced, thereby bringing down the compliance cost of the industry.

"The moment we start making good quality, we will naturally become a player in international trade. It is only the quality culture that will help us to engage with the world and help us to expand our own contribution to resilient supply chains and future businesses. Quality never comes at a cost, it is a cost-saving device," the minister said.

Goyal further said, "We need to re-imagine the entire toy industry. We need to re-think our business plans and we need to re-innovate our way of working to make the industry robust and become part of resilient global supply chain."

Speaking on the occasion, the Minister of Textiles Smriti Zubin Ir expressed happiness that the India Toy Fair 2021 inaugurated by the Prime Minister has received such an overwhelming response, with over 21 lakh registrations, and a large number of exhibitors.

Calling upon reimagining Indian toys, she said that they should reflect Indian legacy, heroes and landmarks.

Ir said, "India itself is a big Toy market and the Indian Toy industry has a bright future."

The first day of The India Toy Fair brought together eminent Indian and international speakers, with proven capabilities in toy design and manufacturing through panel discussions and webinars.

The panel discussion on 'Role of Augmented Reality/ Virtual Reality in Electronics Toys' explored the developments in augmented reality, virtual reality and mixed reality (collectively known as XR) and their impact on the toy industry right from production and manufacturing to retail and marketing.

A webinar on 'use of Open-Ended and Gender-Neutral toys in Early Childhood Development' highlighted the power and value of play in child's development years, introducing toys in early childhood centers and creating pedagogy with toys as educational tools.

The webinar on 'Development of Multisensory Toys for Children with Special Needs' brought to fore the need to build and develop inclusive and multi-sensory products that help in the development of children and children with special needs.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the India Toy Fair 2021 on Saturday through video conferencing. The Fair will be held from February 27 to March 2, 2021. 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.

( With inputs from ANI )