Members of traders' association in Sadar Bazar are blaming Commonwealth Games legacy, inflation, sales tax restrictions and Chinese goods for the slump
Members of traders' association in Sadar Bazar are blaming Commonwealth Games legacy, inflation, sales tax restrictions and Chinese goods for the slump
This Diwali has brought only lukewarm news to traders of the city's wholesale markets. The festival of lights is on October 26 but the wholesale merchants hardly have a reason to cheer. The Sadar Bazar area, the largest wholesale market of the Capital, is fast losing out on business due to many reasons, such as the ommonwealth Games (CWG) legacy and continuous price rise, among others. The traders' association of Sadar Bazar claims this festive season has been rather dull and sales have dipped by almost 60 per cent.
Dampener: Sales in Sadar Bazar, one of the major wholesale markets
in the Capital, have gone down by 60 per cent, compared to last year's
figures, say businessmen. File pic
CWG ufffdthe culprit
"The Commonwealth Games continue to spell doom for us. We did not receive a single major order for goods. A lot of stuff related to the festival was restricted last year during the CWG and it is still holed up with the outstation traders and retailers. Now none of the orders are coming our way," said Paramjeet Singh Pamma, vice-chairman, Federation of Sadar Bazar Tradees Association (FESTA).u00a0
Besides Games and inflation, other factors, such as influx of Chinese goods at cheaper rates in other states, have been major dampeners. Ashok Kumar, owner of a wholesale lighting store in the area, said, "Since these Chinese lights and other goods have come, our business has been reduced to almost half." Shopkeepers in the area also blame the sales tax restrictions, which have become more stringent this year.
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