Govt, industry to discuss ways to promote growth of Indian toy sector on Jul 8

New Delhi: Government officials and industry will hold a detailed discussions on ways to further boost domestic manufacturing and exports of toys on July 8, an official said.

The meeting is organised by Invest India, an arm of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), in collaboration with the Toy Association of India.

The main issues that would figure in the meeting include growing opportunities and regulatory developments in the toy sector to chart a path forward; making India a global toy hub; and ways to integrate Indian toy manufacturers in the global supply chain.

Toy Association of India Senior Vice-President Naresh Kumar Gautam said the government has already taken a series of steps to boost the growth of the sector.

To showcase domestic products, an international fair is being organised from July 6-9 here at Pragati Maidan where over 150 foreign buyers from 35 nations are visiting.

Over 400 domestic toy players will exhibit their innovative products, Gautam said, adding that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has mentioned about the sector in one of his 'Mann ki Baat' programmes and that has given an extra thrust for pushing growth of this labour-intensive segment.

He also suggested that government extend fiscal support measures to stall holders.

He added that the July 8 'Toy Industry CEOs Meet' will be attended by senior officials of the DPIIT, Invest India and domestic industry.

Toy exports have jumped 240 per cent since 2014 and imports declined 52 per cent during the period.

He added that huge opportunities are there for women and as per estimates, about 70 per cent of the workforce are women.

Further, he said construction work has started for the development of a big toy cluster in Noida.

"This will be the biggest toy cluster in India. About 150 people have received land for setting up toy units. Soon, many factories will come up and start production," Gautam, who is also the CEO of Noida-based Little Genius Toys Pvt Ltd, said.