Delhiites say to
'Made in China' goods at Sadar Bazaar, vendors face 20-25% loss
Shopkeepers and wholesalers at Delhi's biggest
wholesale market, Sadar Bazaar, seem to be pay ing the price for China's
continued support towards Pakistan and for voting in the United Nations against
Indian interests. With tensions between India and Pakistan escalating, a social
media campaign #BoycottChinaProduct to boycott Chinese goods, has begun to
show results.
A fake
letter urging people to boycott Chinese goods and go `swadeshi', signed by PM
Modi, was being circulated on social media. Despite the PM's official Twitter
account announcing that the document isn't authentic, the viral post and
ongoing campaigns have actually impacted people, and vendors at Sadar Bazaar
are getting tired of answering, `Yeh India ka hai ya China ka?
`20-25% LOSS HO GAYA HAI'
The
market, which is famous for Chinese lights, gift items, door hangings, lamps,
wall hangings and other decorative items, is now facing a decline in sales due
to the campaign. Mohammad Ali, a shopkeeper at Sadar Bazaar, said, “People have
started asking us about our goods. Pehle toh bas Chinese hi mangte thay kyunki
woh saste hote thay. People have started questioning if our products are from
China. Iss mahaul ki wajah se hi 20-25% ka loss ho gaya hai. Agar koi rule aa
gaya toh pata nahi kya hoga.“
Aadil
Rehman, another shopkeeper, said, “This time, we're selling more Indian-made
lamps because of the increasing demand. Jabse yeh sab hua, tabse log bahut
poochne lage hain, tabhi hum Indian lamps zyada laye hain. Sirf fairy lights
rakhein hain kyunki yeh India mein koi banata nahi hai.“
Another
shopkeeper, Mohammad Arafeen, said that business this time is nothing as
compared to the last year. “Last year, Dussehra tak humara bahut achha business
tha. Iss bar , waisa business nahi ho paya hai, humara toh poora maal hi China
se aaya hai. Har cheez yahan China ki hi hai. Agar logon ne bilkul nahi liya
toh humara toh saara samaan kharab ho jayega.“
`AB TOH DESH KI BAAT HAI'
While
talking to these shopkeepers, a customer who was there to buy lights, told us,
“Koi nahi le raha China ke saaman, aur lena bhi nahi chahiye.“ When we asked
her if the social media campaign had actually made a difference, she said, “Aur
nahi toh kya? Yeh dekho, mere paas toh phone mein Modiji ka message bhi hai.“
Krishna
Lal, another buyer said, “Everyone has heard about the campaign. I've also
bought only Indian products ab toh desh ki baat hai.“
`CUSTOMERS KO JHOOT BOLNA PAD RAHA HAI'
While
taking the stroll through the market, some shopkeepers told us that this time,
they're selling only Indian goods. Kunal Soni, who sells diyas, lights, lamps
and other decorative items, told us, “We would sell goods made in both India
and China, but there was always more demand for Chinese goods. But this time,
because of the tense situation, we're selling only only Indian lights, lamps
and diyas. Ab yeh sara naya saaman Shahdara main banne laga hai , wahin se la
rahein hain.“ Another shopkeeper, who did not wish to be named, said, “Sab
China ka hai, par logon ko jhooth bolna pad raha hai ki India ka hai. India
mein kahan milta hai aisa samaan?
Log lenge nahi, toh India ka batake bech rahein hain.“
`CHINA KA NAAM MAT LO'
While
some vendors were open to talking about the matter, others chose to ignore
questions about Chinese goods. A polite, `Aapko kya chahiye?' was replaced
with, `China ka naam bhi mat lena, yahaan kuch nahi hai wahan ka'. Some even
got angry and asked us, “Aapko kya? Hum toh bas yahaan kaam karte hain, humein
kuch nahi pata.“
(toi)
