(The Gist of PIB) Toyotathon 2021

(THE GIST OF PIB) Toyotathon 2021

Union Minister Women and Child Development and Textiles and Minister for Education inaugurated Toycathon 2021 grand finale.

The Toycathon 2021 was organized jointly by Ministry of Education in coordination with five other Ministries viz: Ministry of Women and Child Development, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Ministry of Commerce &Industry, Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises, and Ministry of Textiles.
This inter-ministerial Toycathon focuses on conceptualizing new and innovative toys using local materials which are economical, affordable, safe, environment friendly, with exceptional high quality for both Indian and global markets.
The Toycathon is based on nine themes viz. Indian Culture, History, Knowledge of India and Ethos; Learning, Education and Schooling; Social and human values; Occupations & specific fields; Environment; Divyang ; Fitness and sport; Out of the box, creative and logical thinking and Rediscovering/redesigning traditional Indian toys
The Toycathon will have 3 variants of tracks of Junior Level, Senior Level and Start up Level and will allow participation of students and teachers from schools, colleges and universities apart from startups and toy experts.

85% toys that our children are playing with are imported and are predominantly made of plastic.
Indian toy market stands at around $1.5 billion USD and currently we are importing a major chunk from outside. The global toy market is estimated to be more than 100 billion USD.
Toycathon-2021 is aimed at boosting the Toy Industry in India to help it capture a wider share of the toy market.
The National Education Policy 2020 advocates for 5+3+3+4 system and it asks for activity-based learning for children through toys and games.