Dastkar- Delhi Haat

The Delhi Haat is an Arts and Crafts market developed by the Indian Government. A "Haat" is is rural market that is constantly on the move. Craftsmen set up markets to display their wares. Here in the Delhi Haat, the area has been designed like a rural village, and artists from all over India come to showcase the crafts and work from their region. The Haat also serves as a great place to taste sample Indian food from all the states. It is truly a delight to the palate. This market is spread over a six acre spread with imaginative traditional rural architecture and provides an ambience for the market. The stone and brickwork paved paths interspersed with grass patches make browsing and ambling fun.

The Haat also serves as a spot for exhibitions from all over India. This gallery showcases performances and exhibits from "Dastkar" - honoring the craftsperson rather than the crafts, and also an exhibit titled "Mapping ancient Indian crafts with Jaya Jaitley". The works featured here are from this exhibition. Artists painstakingly painted maps showcasing the different crafts from each state in India. The color and the detail of these paintings are a treat to the viewer. I have tried to photograph as many as I could.

The acrobatic dancers at Delhi Haat

Human Pyramid

Dilli Haat is a combination food plaza and craft bazaar located in the heart of Delhi, near the All India Institute of Medical Sciences and opposite INA Market. Dilli Haat has stalls representing each state of India, giving a complete variety of tastes available all over India. There are also stalls of crafts from all over India, and from a variety of cultural traditions of India. Around 2003, this market became fully wheelchair-accessible, including an accessible bathroom This is a relative rarity in India.
There are plans to open more Dilli Haats all over Delhi. Unlike the traditional weekly market, the village Haat, Dilli Haat is permanent. Some shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated, usually for fifteen days. Products offered may include rosewood and sandalwood carvings, embellished camel hide footwear, sophisticated fabric and drapery, gems, beads, brassware, metal crafts, and silk and wool fabrics. Shows promoting handicrafts and handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex. To sell wares, there is an application process and spaces are allocated according to which state the seller is from. There is a nominal entrance fee to shop at Dilli Haat (Rs15/- for adult and rs !0 for child.)Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation (DTIDC) is an undertaking of the Government of Delhi, India, that was established in December 1975 for the purpose of promoting tourism and related services in the city of Delhi. It has an authorized share capital of Rs. 10.00 crores and a paid up capital of Rs. 6.28 crores. It is involved in several other activities, some of which do not fall under the core activity of promotion of tourism, such as the selling of liquor. This particular activity, however, provides the corporation with revenue that can be utilized in tourism or other related development activities for the National Capital Region of Delhi.The Corporation provides several other activities for tourists. They are:
Azad Hind Gram - a rural tourist complex with amphitheater and a museum in the memory of the freedom fighter Subhash Chandra Bose
four Coffee Homes - run by the Catering Division of DTTDC are located at prime locations in Delhi.
Dilli Haat - a market providing items for sale directly by the craftsmen from different parts of the country at one place, recognized as an art, crafts and cultural centre of Delhi, which was visited by approximately 16 lakhs visitors in 2001.
Exhibition and Conference Musical Fountain - located at Ajmal Khan Park with water cascades synchronized to coloured lights, each show lasts 20 minutes.
Sound and Light show (Son-et-lumiere) - takes place at the Old Fort and projects the Fort's history realistically through weekly one hour shows in Hindi and English covering the history of Delhi over a period of 5000 years.
Other activities include boating at nearby lakes and arranging for parasailing and mountaineering activities in India.
Selling of liquor Besides the core activity of promotion of tourism, the Corporation directly sells liquor all over Delhi, which is one of the few activities that provides net profit to the corporation. The sale of liquor is carried out through liquor shops, which number over one hundred, and includes the direct selling of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and Country Made Liquor (CL).
Infrastructure The Corporation constructs flyovers as part of the development of infrastructure for easy commuting by tourists in Delhi. The revenue for the construction of some of the flyovers in Delhi has been generated from a share of profit that the Corporation earns from the sale of Country made Liquor (CL). The Corporation charges a flat rate of profit, a margin of Rs.6 per bottle of country liquor, of which a share of Rs.5/- has been fixed as a contribution towards the construction of flyovers. The construction is carried out by the Engineering Division of the Corporation.
Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management The Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (Delhi Chapter) provides short-term diploma programme on Tourism and Travel Management on a continuous basis, which assists development of tourism by transferring knowledge in areas of tour and tourism.
Proposed projects
DTIDC has several projects planned:
Said-Aj-Ajaib
Development of Four Dilli Haats.
Water Sports Tourism Complex at Bhaalswa Lake
Establishment of Wayside Amenities at N.H.-8.
Development of a Mini India Heritage Complex
Restoration of denotified monuments
Refurbishment of monuments
Tourist reception centres
Meet and Assist Services
Radio Cabs
Photo Identity Cards .
Illumination of Monuments
Development of Lakes
Use of Information Technology-Helpline/ call centre
52 Episode tele-serial on tourism
Handy Audio reach kit
Computer kiosks with WLL phones.