KANNIYAKUMARI: Traditional kilns and throwing wheels function non-stop throughout the day in Chunkankadai near Nagercoil, where more than 100 potters are busy shaping and firing clay pots to meet a target of nearly three lakh pots, to be supplied for the Pongala festival at the Attukal Bhagavathy temple in Thivananthapuram in Kerala.
At Chunkankadai, known as the pottery hub of Kanniyakumari district, potters under the Ponmalai Thirumalai Cooperative Cottage Industrial Society have been involved in the trade since the 1970s.
Amid being hard-pressed to keep up with the orders, T Hariharan, president of the cooperative society, told TNIE on Tuesday that 80% of the pottery items made here are sent to Kerala, and the remaining will be sold within the district and nearby areas. “We make pots for the Kerala temple festival every year. The festival will be held on March 3 this year, for which we started production last November,” he said, optimistic of exceeding the demand of 3 lakh pots.
Potter T Venue said that the workers have been toiling throughout the day to meet the demand. Another potter, K Babu, said, “We make pots for the Mandaikadu Bhagavathy Amman temple festival in Kanniyakumari district and also for the Pongal festival.” He said potters earn around Rs 700 a day, and with no rain, the work has been going ahead without major interruptions. V Sulojana, a woman worker, said many women were also involved in the trade as it provides vital support to the families.
K Rajan, a trader from Thiruvananthapuram, said he had brought a mini-lorry to Chunkankadai to buy pots for the Kerala temple festival, as the devotees there have already begun purchasing pots.