Six hundred Sri Lankan craftsmen were felicitated by President Maithripala Sirisena at the Shilpa Abhimani National Handicrafts Awards ceremony in Polgolla, Kandy last week.
Minister of Industry and Commerce, Rishad Bathiudeen and the State Minister of Industry and Commerce, Champika Premadasa were also present. The Shilpa Abhimani Presidential Awards session was organised by the National Crafts Council. The winners were selected from a wide range of handicraft sectors - from clay, mats, fibres, jute, cotton, cane and bamboo, metal, jewellery related crafts, masks and puppets, carvings, musical instruments, textiles and textile based, lace, lacquer works, wood based crafts, leather crafts, stone based crafts and paintings & sculptures-and even specialised crafts such as Batik and Sri Lanka’s own Dumbara designs.