Cuttack: A wide range of terracotta products will be on display at an exhibition in the city from February 16 to 20.

The District Industries Centre, Cuttack, will organise the five-day fair.

Cuttack general manager of the centre, Shyama Chandra Dash, told The Telegraph that the five-day exhibition exclusively devoted to terracotta, sponsored by the Directorate of Handicrafts and Cottage Industries, would be organised for the first time in the city. "Normally, the exclusive terracotta exhibition, Mruttika, is being organised in Bhubaneswar every year since 2006. Seeing the large number of people visiting the event and artisans getting a proper platform to market their products, it was decided to organise such an event in Cuttack," Dash said.

Terracota is clay-like earthenware ceramic that can be either glazed or unglazed. The term is also used to refer to items made out of this material and to its natural, the brownish orange colour, which varies considerably.

Terracotta is one of the famous handicrafts segment in the state and is mainly practiced by the tribal people of the state. The tribal people make the craft using traditional methods.

They use the special type of clay and design to match their skills. Popular items are roof tiles and utensils such as plates, khullars or the earthen teacups, jars and many other kitchen items.

Dash said 50 kiosks would be erected at the Bali yatra maidan to provide 85 artisans from 15 districts a common platform for marketing the decorative products. "We hope that people here would show interest in terracotta products and the exhibition would be a profitable venture for the artisans. A food court will also be arranged for the people at the exhibition," Dash further said.