Chinese crackers flooding the local markets was seen as a big dampener for domestic cracker-makers and retailers. It was expected that the call for ban on import and sale of Chinese crackers would come to their rescue .
However, even as the campaign against Chinese crackers has been gathered momentum, it appears that the woes of the Indian crackers and fireworks manufacturers and traders persist.
It is the campaign against crackers by schools, resident welfare associations and environmentalists that is now thwarting their business in this short-lived season of Diwali.
Their enthusiasm is at a low, says industry and trade body ASSOCHAM, after gauging the mood in about 10 cities across the country. Majority of the 250 firecrackers traders in these cities cited growing environmental awareness, rising cost of living, increasing tendency among people to save their hard-earned money instead of spending on crackers, paucity of time and traffic congestion during festive period have together dented this business over the years.
Most of the traders said they have seen a sharp decline of about 20 per cent year-on-year from past five years and have also almost halved the amount of crackers they used to get in wake of poor sales.
ASSOCHAM estimates that hundreds of units in Shivakashi have shut shops and 30,000 people have lost their livelihood. However, they have not lost hope and are counting on a last minute rush to buy sparklers, wheels, ropes and other fireworks that mark Diwali.
