The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has mapped out 1,244 products across 773 districts as part of the One District One Product (ODOP) initiative. The idea behind it is to promote goods tied to specific regions, give local industries a boost, and spread economic development more evenly across the country.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry says state and Union Territory governments pick their own ODOP products, and the initiative’s focus stays on branding, marketing, and getting these local goods better access to markets.
DPIIT is pushing products through exhibitions and e-commerce
To get more eyes on district-specific goods, the government has leaned on trade fairs at home and abroad, capacity-building programmes, and seller onboarding to the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) ODOP Bazaar.
The GeM ODOP storefront now lists more than 500 product categories covering over 1,300 products. More than 10 states have gone a step further and set up their own e-commerce platforms just for ODOP goods.
Unity Malls get financial backing
ODOP products are also getting shelf space through PM Ekta Malls, or Unity Malls, under the Scheme for Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI).
States and Union Territories with legislatures, including Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, and Puducherry, can tap interest-free loans of up to ₹200 crore, repayable over 50 years, to build these malls. The malls are meant to display ODOP products alongside Geographical Indication (GI) goods and local handicrafts.
Food processing gets its own scheme
The Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme applies the same district-focused logic to food processing, run by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries.
It includes a 35% credit-linked capital subsidy of up to ₹10 lakh, seed capital for Self Help Group members, training for entrepreneurs on specific products, help setting up common infrastructure and incubation centres, and a 50% grant covering branding, packaging, quality standards, and food safety compliance.
No dedicated funding, but plenty of convergence
There’s no separate district-wise budget for ODOP. Instead, the DPIIT has enabled states to draw on existing schemes across MSMEs, food processing, agriculture, handicrafts, exports, and skill development to cover infrastructure, financing, branding, and market access.
PMFME also coordinates with other ministries on supply chains, having identified 24 shared ODOP clusters with APEDA and seven fish and marine product clusters with MPEDA for branding, export support, and value-chain work.
Districts as export hubs
A parallel effort, Districts as Export Hubs, has identified export-ready products and services in 734 districts. State and District Export Promotion Committees now exist across all 36 states and Union Territories, and 249 District Export Action Plans have been adopted to sharpen production, logistics, and export readiness.
Key Takeaway: The government has teamed up with the Ministry of External Affairs and Indian missions overseas to run exhibitions, buyer-seller meets, and trade events. This has led to ODOP Walls at embassies, three overseas retail outlets (two in Singapore, one in Kuwait), and ODOP items being handed out as official gifts during bilateral and multilateral meetings.
Officials say these steps have widened market access, encouraged entrepreneurship, and supported jobs, though no national-level export data exists specifically for ODOP products. Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada shared these details in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.
MCQ’s:
1. The One District One Product (ODOP) initiative is implemented by which of the following under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry?
A. Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT)
B. Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)
C. Department of Commerce
D. Invest India
2. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has identified how many products across how many districts under the One District One Product (ODOP) initiative?
A. 734 products across 1,244 districts
B. 1,300 products across 500 districts
C. 1,244 products across 773 districts
D. 773 products across 1,244 districts
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