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Wooden toy craft dying a slow death in city
The ancient craft of wooden toys is dying a slow death for want of customers. About 500 odd artisans residing in Kashmiriganj and Khojwa areas are finding it hard to sell their wares and are now living the life of abject poverty.
The ancient craft of wooden toys is dying a slow death for want of customers. About 500 odd artisans residing in Kashmiriganj and Khojwa areas are finding it hard to sell their wares and are now living the life of abject poverty.
Apart from a persistent downslide in demand for wooden toys, the other factors that are affecting this business are the high costs of wood, inadequate assistance by the government to promote wooden craft items and finally the heavy influx of cheap Chinese toys that are very popular among children today.
Said Prahalad Das Gupta, who led a five-member team of woodcarvers to display wooden toys of Varanasi at the Republic Day Function in New Delhi on January 26, 2005, “This business has continued in our family for generations but seeing the sorry state of affairs, I will not allow my sons to continue with it.” He also attributed the decline in this trade by almost 50 per cent to the terrorist attack recently in the city.
Meanwhile president of Khilauna Dastkari Samiti, Kanahiya Sharma said that wooden toys manufacturers had been doing business on a 30 per cent margin.
He said his organisation had been demanding from the State government to set up a mini depot for woods to overcome the problems of expensive wood for artisans. He further urged the state government to ensure availability of Koraiya woods because it was better than Eucalyptus woods.
‘Earlier we used woods of Koraiya tree for manufacturing toys and other wooden items but due to ban, now we are using woods of Eucalyptus tree for the purpose,’ he said, adding, ‘the price of Eucalyptus woods have become costlier.”
He also blamed government apathy for the pathetic state of artisans. Although there is a steady demand for wooden handicraft items, toys, boxes, beads etc in the foreign markets specially USA, Dubai and Mauritius “but sadly due to lack of proper government backing our goods are not reaching these markets rendering the artisans almost jobless,” he rued.
He also alleged that some non governmental organisations, have been diverting government funds meant for the artisans and has asked the concerned sofficials to set up an inquiry into the matter.
