What happened
The Office of the DC (Handicrafts) and the Office of the DC (Handlooms) under the Ministry of Textiles implement the National Handicrafts Development Programme and the National Handloom Development Programme respectively. Under these programmes, both offices provide financial assistance for setting up Urban Haats to enable direct marketing of handicrafts and handloom products by artisans and weavers. A Rajya Sabha written reply states that 28 Urban Haats are currently operational in India, including 3 in Rajasthan.
Background and earlier position
In the Ministry of Textiles, the National Handicrafts Development Programme and the National Handloom Development Programme are the two umbrella programme tracks used for supporting handicraft and handloom ecosystems. Urban Haats operate as an on-ground market infrastructure approach within these tracks, aimed at improving market access through direct buyer–seller interaction rather than relying only on intermediated channels.
What changed now
The new information provided in the Rajya Sabha written reply is a national operational coverage update: the operational count of Urban Haats is 28 across the country, with Rajasthan accounting for 3 operational Urban Haats.
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