KENDRAPARA: Around 120 Muslim women of a self-help group (SHG) at Golarhat village in Kendrapara’s Derabish block are busy stitching national flags to meet the huge demand for Tricolour on Independence Day on August 15.
Sarifa Begum (24) of Utkal Grameen SHG is an expert flag maker with two years of experience. “All my family members are involved in the art of making national flags. This is a busy season for us and we cannot waste any time,” said Sarifa while helping her mother to sew a flag.
Like Sarifa, hundreds of women and girls have been toiling round-the-clock for the last one month to complete their orders. While some prefer to work in their homes, others stitch the flags in groups at workshops.“The sale of national flags is booming and flag makers have bagged more orders than their expectations. We have already sold around 10,000 flags,” said Noorjahan Begum (25).
Many flag makers have already run out of stocks while others are busy meeting the increasing demand on the eve of Independence Day. The cost of a national flag starts from Rs 50 and goes up to Rs 300. Each artisan earns around Rs 10 to Rs 100 to stitch a flag. Sabnam Begum (30) said an artisan family earns around Rs 4,000 to Rs 6,000 by sewing flags of different sizes.
“Members of our SHG and producer group stitch dresses for schoolchildren, bed sheets, jackets, etc as we get financial assistance from the Mission Shakti. But on the eve of Independence Day and Republic Day, we make national flags,” she added.
Coordinator of the district Mission Shakti Kailash Chandra Senapati said, “With our guidance, the SHG and producer group of Golarhat village are making hundreds of national flags. We are also helping them to sell the flags.”