Overview
- Lepakshi, the Andhra Pradesh Handicrafts Development Corporation, launched the QR-code platform on Thursday and assigned live profiles to eight flagship products.
- Scanning a code shows structured provenance for each item, including the artwork’s history, materials, production time, dimensions and the named artisan who made it.
- The first-phase items include Bobbili Ekanda Veena by Bonumaddi Murali, multiple Kalamkari series by C. Subramanyam, Savara tribal paintings and selected wooden carvings.
- Officials say the system was developed rapidly at the instance of Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and was built in about a month, a timeline and the claim that it is the country’s first such platform are stated by Lepakshi and not independently verified.
- Lepakshi plans to expand the scheme across more products and artisan clusters and link profiles to existing tags such as Geographical Indication and One District-One Product to boost artisan incomes and reduce fake goods.