Demolition without notice leaves idol-makers in Dhoolpet fuming

GHMC starts bringing down shed from Saturday morning; traders claim they pay rent
A resident trying to stop an earth mover as GHMC tries to demolish the encroachments at Dhoolpet on saturday | Sathya Keerthi
A resident trying to stop an earth mover as GHMC tries to demolish the encroachments at Dhoolpet on saturday | Sathya Keerthi

HYDERABAD: Every year, in the run-up to Ganesh Chaturthi and Dasara, people flock to Dhoolpet to order the finest idols. However, on Saturday, the idol makers were an aggrieved lot as they were not given notice prior to demolition of sheds where they prepare and store the idols. GHMC personnel, with the help of police, started bringing down the sheds from early morning on Saturday.

The traders said that they pay rent for land where the sheds were put up and now they are helpless as they do not know where to take the idols which they are preparing. “We were not given any prior notice about the demolition would be taken up. Since women, and most of the children are illiterate here, they rely on making idols for livelihood.

The business of Gudumba was clamped down. And what we are involved in is not illegal business. If we are not allowed to do this work, what are we supposed to do?,” questioned Shivram Bai, while sitting by a destroyed shed and a heap of unsold idols. She added that those who are out of Gudumba business after curbs, used to prepare idols and now they too are effected.

Those who were effected because of demolition urged the government to pay them for the losses as idols, frames of idols, and steel sheds were destroyed. “The government should provide us a solution,” said Baldev Singh, adding that, “When I produced the land documents, an official tore and threw them away.” Three-generations prior to him have been in the business, he said.

A few other traders said that they rented land to prepare and keep the idols. “We invest money to prepare the idols and we recover the money only during the festival season. Besides, we are not given loans by banks. So we opt for hand loans which are given at an interest rate of five to ten per cent,” said Rajesh Singh, a trader of idols. Pointing at the unsold Durga idols, Pooja Singh, one of the woman who is dependent on the business, said that while the idols are unsold, they still have to pay the rent for the land in the area. Meanwhile, the traders rued that around 100 families are dependent on the business of idol making and an alternate source of livelihood after demolishing the sheds was not shown to them.

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