Jamshedpur: A three-day Diwali Mela is being organised at the Chamber Bhavan in Bistupur. Over a dozen of potters have put up stalls at the fair, which is being organised by the Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI).
SCCI president Ashok Bhalotia, who inaugurated the mela said that generations of people have been lighting their houses with earthen diyas (oil lamps) during Diwali, the festival of lights. Though people are increasingly buying electric strings of lights, floating candles and perfumed wax lights for Diwali but the demand for diyas remains the same.
“We are providing a platform to the potters. Apart from other customers we have asked all our members to make their Diwali purchases from those potters who have put up stalls at the fair,” said the president. The fair will open at 11 am and continue till 7 pm on all three days, he added.
A seller said: “People prefer performing puja in traditional style. At least 11 diyas are lit before Lord Ganesh and Goddess Laxmi on Diwali. The light spread through cannot be matched by electrical gadgets. Though youngsters are getting attracted to LED and Chinese lights, diyas are still in demand. The response has been overwhelming at the mela.”
“People want comfort. They don’t want to take pains of putting oil and buring the diyas which are a part of the tradition. For them it’s easy to switch on and brighten their homes. Moreover the input cost of the earthen lamps have grown to such an extent that it has virtually become impossible for the manufacturer to sell a dozen odd lamps for a single digit cost,” said a trader.
A senior functionary of SCCI said that with electrical articles being available in various forms and designs the consumers are but naturally drawn towards them but a majority of people are still the buyers of earthen lamps though others might have migrated towards the hi tech market. Despite the advent of LED lights and cheap bulbs, people in the city are still going for the traditional diyas this Diwali. With the changing trends, potters too are wheeling out designer diyas he noted.
