Srinagar, March 30 : Did you know that Oukhoo village in Pulwama district of south Kashmir is known as the “pencil village of India”? Well, it supplies 80 per cent of the raw material to country’s leading pencil manufacturing ts who export it to 150 countries with the help of the Jammu and Kashmir government. The Oukhoo village came to prominence after Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his 70th “ Mann Ki Baat” programme praised the village for its role in supplying pencil slat which is exported to other nations around the world. Manzoor Ahmad Alai who is running “Jehlum Agro Industries” t in Oukhoo village is a major supplier of the pencil making raw material. Narrating his success story, Alai said that the companies including Natraj, Hindustan pencils and Afsara have been purchasing a special kind of wood “Deodhar” from Kashmir. The 35-year-old Alai, who could not continue his studies after class 10, in 1993, took up the job of a labourer before setting up his t in 2012. Today he is providing jobs to about 100 people, including a good number of poor women of the village Oukhoo. When the government in Jammu and Kashmir banned the cutting of “Deodhar” trees, the companies used to export a special kind of wood from China and Germany for making of pencils. Since 1990, the local entrepreneurs of the valley decided to make use of Kashmir’s famous “Poplar” trees, a peculiarly supple wood which makes it best suited for manufacturing of pencils after undergoing several trials, Alai said. He said that the authorities were exporting logs of it to the companies in Indian states and he was doing labour work besides purchasing and selling these “poplar” logs. “One day I made up my mind to see how these companies are making pencils,” Alai said and added “I went to the factory where Natraj pencil blocks were being made in Gujarat.” He said after deliberation with the company, they allowed me to supply the blocks from Kashmir instead of wooden logs. Alai said he put up a t and purchased a Band-saw in 2010 and started making blocks which enabled the Natraj company to minimize their expenditure and supplies of brick type blocks. He said: “In 2012, I went to see how they were making pencils now and for that Hindustan pencil makers contacted foreign suppliers for the latest machines for making pencils and I brought one.” “Today, about 100 workers including 50 village girls are working in my t at besides all my family members,” Alai said that pencil making is an all season business and indeed it is integral to life as education is a gift none should miss. “Yes I want to expand my business and for that I have made requests to the government for the past two years to provide nterrupted electricity 24×7 which could help me to expand,” Alai said. If he gets what he has requested for, he plans to provide a 100 more jobs in the valley in the next 90 days. He said: “We are ready to move to another district for exploring the business. But where I am presently residing is one of the best places where I could get the moisturized wood which is not available in other parts,” His message to youngsters of Kashmir Valley is: “Work hard and explore the best avenues life provides.” QAB ING