Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) on Monday launched first-ever 'Terracotta Grinder' at Sewapuri in Varanasi. This machine can be used to grind wasted and broken pottery items for re-use in pottery-making.
Present at the launch, KVIC Chairman Vinay Kumar Saxena said, "The wasted pottery items were earlier ground in normal Khal-musal (mortar and pestle) and its fine powder was mixed with the normal clay. Mixing this powder in stipulated ratio to normal clay makes the resulting pottery items stronger.
"This Terracotta grinder will make grinding of wasted pottery items faster than the traditional mortar and pestle. It will lessen the cost of production, and will also help in solving the problem of shortage of clays," Kumar added.
"The machine will be a boon for potters as Union Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Nitin Gadkari has proposed to introduce kulhads and other terracotta products at 400 prominent railway stations. The proposal is under active consideration of the Railways," read a statement by KVIC.
The Terracotta grinder was designed by the KVIC Chairman and fabricated by a Rajkot-based engineering unit.
At the occasion, the KVIC Chairman also distributed 200 Electric Potter Wheels and other pottery machines among the villagers.