BRAHMAGIRI (PURI): Twelve days after Fani, Brahmagiri, one of the major trade centres of Puri district, is still struggling to be back on its feet.
More than 60 percent of the 720 shops and business establishments along with vending areas in the block have been severely affected. All three markets located on either side of the one km stretch have suffered extensive damage. The roof-less and collapsed shops lie abandoned with hardly anyone willing to rebuild.
Secretary of Binayak Samiti Bada Bazaar Laxmikanta Mohapatra said the cyclone has adversely affected trade and traders’ community apart from bringing miseries for people irrespective of economic status.
“The loss is huge in the main market. Of the 420 shops almost half have been damaged. Daily business in the market has come down from around `30 lakh to less than `2 lakh,” he said.
The market was completely shut for three days after the cyclone struck. Now, only those open are restaurants, road-side eateries, betel shops, vegetable and electric equipment shops besides medicine stores.
“I had stocked clothes of around `2 lakh but have lost more than 50 per cent of the stock as wind blew away the roof over my shop. My house has also been affected,” said Abhiram Nayak, a trader.
The traders dealing with electrical accessories, however, are making brisk business. As the entire region plunged into darkness following complete breakdown of power infrastructure, the sale of solar-powered and battery-operated LED lights and table fans has soared.
Even as the cyclone battered the sleepy town, there were few who stood firm to their social commitment. The devastation could not deter Rabi Narayan Behera, one of the oldest hoteliers in the market, from doing his bit.
“Though we could not open the hotel on May 3 morning as wind damaged the backyard kitchen, it was ready by evening after the cyclone crossed. With the ration and vegetables stocked, we had served food for the next three days at a subsidised price,” Behera added.