DHUBRI, Sept 27 - Idol-makers of the entire district have lamented that they have been adversely affected by the pandemic and have suffered irreparable losses.
The artisans said since the beginning of the lockdown, a number of pujas in the district had been cancelled, which includes both social pujas and those organised at the individual level.
�As soon as the lockdown was imposed, the idols for Basanti Puja went unsold. Next, the yearly pujas in many temples and several households were cancelled during April and May,� said Bhaskar Paul, who is a fourth generation craftsman of Dhubri town.
�On Phela Baisak, we used to sell many small Ganesh idols, which were largely affected. Similarly, the demand for Manasa Puja idols too was very limited. Like us, many artisans still have stocks of many unsold idols, specially Viswakarma idols in their workshops and godowns,� said Bhaskar Paul.
Idol-makers of the district said that within a few days after Mahalaya, the Durga Puja organising committees often place their orders to make idols of the gods and goddesses for their pandals, but this year such orders are hard to come by.
Idol-makers of the district admitted that their orders for the Durga Puja have come down drastically and even the orders that have been placed are not for fancy or special idols, unlike every year.
Narayan Chandra Paul, one of the senior most idol-makers of the district added that many ordered idols have since been cancelled, not only due to the lockdown, but to avoid large gatherings as mandated by the puja guidelines.
�The business is at its worst stage�, said the senior craftsmen, who also added, �we have been in this trade since generations, but have never witnessed such dreary days.�
Paul added that the cost of raw materials had increased manifold this year, but the buyers are not willing to offer appropriate prices even for those few idols that are being sold or have been ordered.
�The loss that the artisans of the idol-making industry has sustained due to the pandemic, cannot in fact be calculated. We can just say that it is irreparable and will have a long-term detrimental effect in the district�s idol-making industry.�
