India's gift to G20: Leveraging 'soft power and civilisational heritage'

Whether it's Punjab's Phulkari embroidery, West Bengal's Kantha stitchwork, or Madhubani painting from Bihar, G20 nations' leaders, delegates attending summit will be able to purchase many such items

From arts and culture to technological developments, India plans to showcase its ‘soft power and civilisational heritage’ during the Group of Twenty (G20) Leaders’ Summit in the national capital later this week.

Whether it’s Punjab’s Phulkari embroidery, West Bengal’s Kantha stitchwork, or Madhubani painting from Bihar, G20 nations’ leaders and delegates attending the summit will be able to purchase many such items from the crafts bazaar set to run from September 8–10 at Bharat Mandapam — the convention centre where the event will be hosted.

The crafts bazaar will feature handicraft products from different parts of India, with a special focus on the One District, One Product scheme, geographical indication-tagged items, and products crafted by women as well as tribal artisans.

“We are showcasing the market potential of each product, which will be presented by states and Union Territories (UTs),” Muktesh Pardeshi, special secretary at the G20 Secretariat in the Ministry of External Affairs, said on Tuesday.

This initiative aims not only to promote Made in India products but also to provide international visibility to the indigenous products of local artisans, Pardeshi told reporters during a briefing.

Approximately 30 states and UTs, as well as central agencies like the Khadi and Village Industries Commission and Saras Aajeevika, among others, will participate in the exhibition.

“This crafts bazaar brings together the best handicraft items from across India under one roof while also showcasing the exquisite skills and craftsmanship of our artisans,” according to an official statement.

In a separate exhibition pavilion, India will also showcase its digital payment initiatives in the financial sector, including a public tech platform for frictionless credit, the central bank digital currency, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), RuPay, and the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS), among others.

Within the public tech platform, visitors will be able to experience an interactive demonstration of the entire process — from onboarding to sanction and disbursement of the Kisan Credit Card and dairy loans — in an entirely digital manner in just a few minutes, revolutionising rural credit.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have indicated that going forward, the platform can be used for the distribution of small-ticket loans to benefit small businesses.

The RBI will showcase an informational video about its digital rupee and its journey. There will also be live digital rupee transactions demonstrated by select banks participating in the pilot.

‘UPI One World’ will enable visitors to access the UPI ecosystem without needing a bank account in India. Government officials have stated that visitors will benefit from first-hand experience of breezing through payments via UPI.

“BBPS cross-border bill payment will highlight the adaptability of the platform to integrate with fintechs and conventional financial players to facilitate domestic as well as cross-border payment transactions. The prepaid payment instrument linked to UPI will be provided to foreign nationals and non-resident Indians coming from G20 countries, and it can be topped up once the balance is depleted with usage across merchants,” an official statement said.