NEW DELHI | MUMBAI: Social media campaigns calling for a boycott of Chinese lights and decoration items ahead of the Diwali festival may not be proving very effective.Several traders' associations across the country said consumers are still opting for the cheaper Chinese lights over India-made products, ignoring the campaigns on social media platforms like Twitter and WhatsApp that exhorted consumers to give Chinese-made products a miss after Beijing showed a leaning towards Pakistan in the aftermath of the Karshmir terror attacks.The campaigns urged consumers here to buy Indian-made products instead."Chinese products are a huge rage due to low cost. Indian consumers prefer Chinese products due to low costs," said Sat Narayan, president of the Gaffar Market and Vishnu Marg Market Association.Highlighting the difference in price, a shopkeeper in a market in west Delhi said a 10-m-long fairy light made in China costs Rs 50 while a similar product from India is priced at Rs 200.However, sellers say there are few Indian alternatives for most Diwali-specific items, such as LED lights and rice lights. "Indian companies had stopped producing lights for Diwali and other festivals almost 10 years ago, ever since their imports from China started," said Narayan.VB Bharvad of Electric Merchants' Association in Mumbai said, "Let the government come up with alternatives and proper gui delines and we will not be behind."There are instances where raw materials are procured from China and the product assembled in India. "So we can buy the lights and assemble the products here, but the dependence will not go until we start making our own," said Deepak R Narang of NP Industries, which used to manufacture lights earlier.Though consumers are asking for Indian alternatives the only items available are the 'diyas', lamps and shades made of plastic, clay and terracotta. The designs are copies of Chinese 'diyas', but they are made in India.However, some associations such as the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) expect 60-70 per cent less transaction in Chinese goods.The GCCI had urged traders to boycott China-made goods."Firecrackers and decorative lights worth Rs 2,000 crore get sold during Diwali in Gujarat. With China dumping its firecrackers and decorative lights, its share in the total business was close to Rs 1,500 crore," said Shailesh Patwari , senior vice-president of GCCI. There will be huge blow to Chinese products this year, at least in Gujarat, he said.