DURING a ceremony organized by the Indian Government’s Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) in New Delhi, the Consulate General of India in Vancouver was awarded the gold medal in the “Mission” category for promoting the “One District One Product” (ODOP) initiative in Western Canada.

External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal presented the award. P. Kumaran, Officer on Special Duty (Economic Relations and Development Partnership Administration) of the External Affairs Ministry, received the award on behalf of the Consulate. Indian High Commissioner in Ottawa, Sanjay Kumar Verma, and Indian Consul General Manish in Vancouver witnessed the ceremony virtually with other invited guests.

The Consulate in Vancouver has taken several initiatives to promote ODOP products in Western Canadian provinces to execute the vision of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi of #AtamNirbharBharat (Self-Reliant India) through the “One District One Product” initiative. Several events related to ODOP were organized and information provided to stakeholders on the relevance of ODOP. The Consulate worked closely with the local business community to promote ODOP products and received excellent support. Community members were also briefed about the ODOP initiative of the Government of India and encouraged to procure and promote ODOP products.

The Consulate extended its appreciation to business and community leaders for supporting the initiatives of the ODOP scheme.

The One District One Product (ODOP) initiative is aimed at fostering balanced regional development across all districts of India. The initiative aims to select, brand, and promote at least one product from each district (One District – One Product) of the country to enable holistic socioeconomic growth across all regions.