Traders rue ‘unnecessary panic’

NEW DELHI: Holi goods traders sitting idle just five days before the festival would be an unimaginable sight under normal circumstances. But this year, the festival of colours could prove to be a damp squib for shopkeepers and wholesalers.Large scale importers are set to be hit particularly hard as consumers and traders are shying away from made-in-China Holi products such as balloons, toys and colours due to the coronavirus scare. Holi-related Chinese goods worth about Rs 500 crore are lying with importers across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai, according to an estimate by trader bodies.When asked what they intend to do with the unsold inventory, importers said they would have to bear the brunt of the losses. “This was unforeseen,” said Ashish Grover, a New Delhi-based importer of Holi products. “Holi is one of the biggest festivals. The losses this year will have a long-term impact on my business,” he added.Much hype has been created in the country on novel coronavirus, which has badly impacted the domestic market,” said B C Bhartia, national president of Confederation of All India Traders. “Even retail traders are least interested in procuring Chinese goods,” he said.Sanjeev Jain, a trader who deals in Holi equipment, said he had been sitting idle all day. “The shop is empty. While we all had bought goods from China before December, it seems it will be difficult to clear them,” Jain said. The biggest hub for trade of Holi goods in Sadar Bazar is reporting a severe decline in sale of Holi essentials. The recent riots in northeast Delhi have also kept people from nearby towns away.Kale Ram (58), a sales representative, said he has been selling colours and pichkaris for the past 30 years but has never witnessed such a drop in sales. “Small shopkeepers from all over north India come here to purchase in bulk. This year, sales are very slow as outsiders have this image that the entire Delhi was affected by riots,” Ram said.While traders had imported multiple niche items like ‘police cannon’, ‘rocket launcher’ and ‘Holi crackers’, the clientele has simply refused to show up. “Last year, some of these popular products had gone out of stock several days before Holi but now traders are even thinking of reducing the prices to clear the stocks. We may be staring at massive losses,” Rahul Sharma , a trader, said.Traders say it takes around 30 days to import goods from China and orders are made almost one month before so that they can be sent to other states. It is estimated that goods worth Rs 90-100 crore are currently stuck in the market.Chokhelal Patwa, another wholesale dealer, said that in a normal year he would not even have time to breathe during the Holi season but this year is different. “Even people who are coming to buy are not purchasing in bulk as they are apprehensive that people might not turn up to celebrate in the same fervour due to the virus scare.” Nikki Kumari, a salesgirl in the shop, said she was finding it extremely difficult to make sales pitches.Sadar Bazar’s cental road is usually lined with roadside vendors who buy cheap goods from wholesale dealers and sell it at a profit. A seasonal trade for many who are low-wage labourers may prove disastrous this year. Nisha Rani, a vendor, said the crowd present in the market was mostly passing traffic. “What will we do of all these colours and balloons? People are simply not coming,” she said.