VIRUDHUNAGAR: It has been a cracker of a year for fireworks manufacturers in Sivakasi and surrounding areas this Deepavali season as they have recorded a combined sale of more than Rs 6,000 crore, which is about 5% to 7% more than last year.
According to The Indian Fireworks Manufacturers Association’s (TIFMA) general secretary T Kannan, cracker sales went up gradually through the season and varieties such as aerial shots received good response from customers. Apart from Tamil Nadu, festive revellers from other states too showed keen interest in purchasing fireworks. “Though there was a slight increase in the cost of a few raw materials like potassium nitrate, the price of crackers was not hiked,” he said, adding that the crackdown on illegal cracker units also helped in improving the output in authorised units.
Cracker manufacturers said if the government takes proactive steps to lift the ongoing ban on garland crackers and use of barium nitrate, the sales could increase by 25% to 35%.
40% output hit due to joint cracker ban: Unit owner
“The ban on joint crackers has nearly affected 40% of production,” owner of a fireworks unit said. Manufacturers also pointed out that this Deepavali season, there was delay by the government in issuing licences for setting up cracker shops. Some districts issued shop licences just six days ahead of festival, he said. “The licences should have been issued to shops at least 20 days ahead of Deepavali to achieve good sales,” some retailers said.
Representatives of the Federation of state’s Fireworks Traders said that the sale of crackers in shops has been quite dull compared to previous years, as nearly 20% of the stock in shops is still unsold. “While the sales report from all regions is yet to be received, there seems to be a dip in sales in northern districts like Chennai, Kancheepuram and Chengalpattu,” a representative said. While permanent shops could stock and sell unsold crackers, temporary retailers will be hit due to the shorter duration of their cracker sale licence, he said. A Alagu Raj (32), proprietor of Alagu Crackers near Meesalur, said sales was average this year as he fell short of his target of Rs 40 lakh by almost Rs 12 lakh. “The purchasing power of customers, too, seems to have dipped as Deepavali fell on the last day of the month. The customers who purchased crackers for Rs 1,000 last year, got crackers for Rs 500-800 only,” he said.