Rain mars shopping and pandal-making - Businessmen worry over lack of customer buzz, idol makers wait for sun to peep out

A half-finished earthen idol covered with plastic sheet to prevent it from getting soaked
in the rain, at an artisan’s workshop in Jalpaiguri on Sunday. Picture by Biplab Basak

TT, Sept. 21: A spell of rain across sub-Himalayan Bengal since Friday evening has left businessmen, idol makers and puja pandal organisers worried with hardly 10 days remaining for Durga Puja to begin.

India Meteorological Department sources has hinted at more rainfall in the next couple of days.

“The western parts of the axis of monsoon trough pass close to the foothills of the Himalayas, cau
sing the rainfall. There is a warning of heavy rainfall in sub-Himalayan Bengal and adjoining Sikkim in the next two-three days after which, the rains are likely to decrease,” said an IMD source today.

In Siliguri, shopkeepers are worried about how much business would perk up ahead of the Pujas if such weather conditions continued to prevail in north Bengal.

“A fortnight or 10 days ahead of Durga Puja, we have an average daily sale of around Rs 50,000. However, in the past two days, the sale was abysmally down. We could sell garments worth around Rs 15,000 or so. If such weather conditions prevail, it would deter people from coming out to shop,” said a store owner in Siliguri.

In Jalpaiguri too, shopkeepers have been waiting for customers to make a beeline for the past two days.

“The consistent drizzle has marred Durga Puja shopping,” said Mukesh Agarwal, a cloth merchant in the town.

Idol makers who have started using electric and kerosene blowers to dry the idols are also worried. “The weather has become damp and there is no sunshine which helps us a lot in drying the idols. We have to bank on the blowers to dry the idols. It is a time consuming process and we are sceptical whether all the idols can be dried and painted,” said Chanchal Pal, an idol maker in Jalpaiguri.

The rain has also put the Durga Puja organisers in trouble.

“The workers engaged in the job are somehow doing the interiors but we have to keep the exteriors covered with tarpaulin. There is no option but to wait for the weather to improve,” said Arup Saha, a representative of Natunpara R.G. Party Durga Puja Committee.

In the past 24 hours, IMD officials said, Buxa got a rainfall of 155mm, followed by Kumargram (132mm), Domohoni (102mm), Jalpaiguri (93mm) and Bagdogra (50mm).