NAGERCOIL: It is a no-brainer that flowers are an integral part of Onam celebrations. The front yard of most homes in Kerala welcome you with a pookalam (rangolis created with flowers) this time of the year. The bordering district of Kanniyakumari is no alien to this tradition. In fact, most Keralites used to throng the markets here until Covid changed everybody’s plans. However, this year, flower sellers here are a happy lot.
Thovalai flower market in Kanniyakumari district is famous not only in TN, but across the borders as well. V Krishnan, president of the Poo Viyabarigal Sangam, told Express that though there were no local sales this year, they have done about 50 per cent sales to Kerala, most of it being online.
It is to be noted that pre-Covid times accounted for about 15 to 20 tonnes of flower sales to Kerala during the Onam season, on a daily basis, said Krishnan. He added it would go up to 100-150 tonnes on the day before Thiruvonam (the main day of celebrations). The otherwise crowded Thovalai market saw not many visitors from Kerala this time, owing to restrictions. However, the orders were placed on call. As a result, this year, about 60-70 tonnes of flowers were sold from Thursday night to Friday noon.
T Thiruvazhi, a trader at the market, said his business was one among the many that were affected due to Covid last year. “But this year’s sales bring some hope to us,” he said, adding that as soon as all the orders were received on phone, they transported the flowers to Thiruvananthapuram, where they were received.
Another flower trader, A Muthukumar, said had it not been for Whatsapp and phone calls, they would have been at loss, once again. He noted that the price, however, had risen by two to three times than the previous year as flower cultivation, too, was affected due to the pandemic.