New Delhi,  Union Minister Smriti Irani launched the national campaign of Knowledge Mission of Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) here on Monday.

"In the rapidly changing business scenario of the country and at the global level, there is a great need for the traders across the country to modernise their existing business model with adoption of digital technology and modern business tools," said Irani.

The CAIT through this campaign will educate and motivate the traders having greater focus on youth and women to become entrepreneurs and adopt hi-tech, modern and digital technology in their existing or proposed business. This campaign will be run across the country through online and offline workshops, seminars and workshops.

Smriti Irani, while addressing the traders, said that by connecting the business class of the country with the Digital India campaign of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the trade and economy of the country will be strengthened and the mutual coordination of the traders with the consumers will also be stepped up.

She said that CAIT's vision of making youth and women entrepreneurs is very commendable because youth are the future of the country and there can be no better management guru than women and this initiative will strengthen both the trade and economy of the country. She further said that Indian businessmen are considered to be the most innovative and converting the trade into modern format will not only increase the business of the traders but will also make it easier to do business. She said that the Knowledge Mission campaign started by CAIT from Monday, which is Teacher's Day, is the need of the hour, through which traders can be imparted knowledge as to why they need to change their business structure.

Describing this mission, Secretary General of the CAIT, Praveen Khandelwal said that in the last few years, foreign e-commerce companies and big corporate companies in their sinister designs are trying to control and monopolies the retail trade of India under a well thought out plan which has caused enormous damage to the trading community of the Country. To protect the country's retail business from this unhealthy consortium competition, this knowledge mission has been started keeping youth and women in the center.

The programme includes multiple training modules to educate and empower the traders for the current business environment., Live & Broadcasted training sessions through Online platform and offline workshops, regular updates of necessary information and continuous communication.

A special focus for financial literacy of women and developing their skills to make them entrepreneurs. It also include knowledge about why modernisation and computerisation of business is necessary, adoption of digital technology & digital payments, Importance of visual merchandising, new look of showroom of their shops, product range planning, importance of display & shelf window, signage in the shop cordial & responsive behaviour with consumers, data management, timely compliance of tax and other laws, optimum usage of social media for business purposes, security aspects, etc.

The CAIT has tied up with Grapoos Edutech, a educational technology company for preparation of training modules on continuous bases. Retail Experts and experienced prominent trade leaders will be the faculty of knowledge mission by both online & offline events. Through this campaign, the steps taken by the government on business related topics and laws, etc., notifications, etc. will be continuously updated.

CAIT National President B.C. Bhartia informed that the first such campaign was started by CAIT through its chain of CAIT Retail Schools in 2012 and in the five years till the year 2017, CAIT has organised more than 50,000 such events with the help of local trade associations across the country.

The knowledge mission is aimed to rope in more than 40,000 trade associations all over the country through which traders will be imparted knowledge of upgradation and modernisation. Till December, 2022, the CAIT has set a target of organising 5,000 programmes through online and offline in all the states. In order to run this campaign smoothly in all the states, CAIT will organise Train the Trainer programme in each state through which this campaign will be run fast in every corner of each state.