Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday inaugurated the 50th golden jubilee edition of the India Carpet Expo in Bhadohi. He also launched 112 development projects worth over Rs 1,340 crore across the Bhadohi, Aurai and Gyanpur constituencies.

The India Carpet Expo is Asia’s largest international handmade carpet trade fair. It draws buyers, exporters and master artisans from around the world to the Bhadohi-Mirzapur-Varanasi carpet belt.

He said Uttar Pradesh has received investment proposals worth Rs 50 lakh crore, with groundbreakings held for Rs 15 lakh crore and another Rs 7.5 lakh crore to begin soon.

He said the state government has given government jobs to 9.5 lakh youths, and another one lakh young people are expected to get government jobs in the next six months.

The Chief Minister also said Uttar Pradesh’s exports have grown about 2.27 times in 10 years to cross Rs 2 lakh crore, making it India’s fifth-largest exporting state. He credited Bhadohi’s handmade carpets as a major contributor to the exports.

“The hands that have woven carpets for centuries must also carry new technology and new design,” he said at the event, calling for modernisation of the craft without abandoning tradition.