KOZHIKODE: As many as 28 teachers from Lakshadeep are busy getting first-hand-knowledge on the elegant Kerala crafts at ‘Sargalaya,’ the craft village in Iringal near Vadakara. The craft teachers of the island were assigned by the education department of Lakshadeep for a 10-day training at Sargalaya.
Orientation classes and practical training was being given in crafts such as palm leaf, coir craft, coconut shell making, paper craft, metal engraving, sea shell making, hay art and many others. “A speciality was the training given in making crafts out of ‘Kuruthola’ leaves. The team is thoroughly enjoying the training session,” says Rajesh T.K, General Manager of Sargalaya craft village.
The teachers are the coir craft, needle craft teachers working in HS, HSST levels. “We are quite impressed by the craft village. The arrangements and the availability of raw materials for craft-making are wonderful. We hope we can come here and learn the nuances of the art later,” said Abdulla P.A, the seniormost teacher of the team.
The master craftsmen of Sargalaya are imparting lessons to the team. The women members of the team were spellbound by the various crafts made by Aandi Panikker out of ‘Kuruthola’ leaves. “They want to impart the same to students there. The problem is that all the raw materials would not be available in the island,” said Shivadasan K.K, the craft designer at Sargalaya. The team will complete the training on Wednesday.
