Rahiba R Parveen
SRINAGAR: The excitement usually witnessed days before the Eid festival seems dampened this time around. Or is it?
The reason, many say, is the high rate of inflation across the country. However still, businessmen are waiting, fingers crossed, for a last minute boost in sales.
Nafeesa Bano, a homemaker from Hawal area of the city, told FreePress this time she has cut down on the otherwise ‘grand feast’.
“We would buy a lot of sweets, bakery items with mutton and chicken stuffing but this time we have preferred some simple items…,” she said.
Ms Bano said she could not miss sweets or mutton and decided to have lesser stuffings “as prices have skyrocketed.” “Onion still costs 80-90 a kilo.”
But Maqbool Ahmad from Pampore, said he simply cut down on meat itself. But he said he plans to cook mutton from the three sheep that he will sacrifice.
“That way it is good. Eid Al-Azha is different as it is very important for us to buy sheep for sacrifice. Thus my entire calculation was based on how to manage other things and still save.”
No Rush
The Muslim festival, second of the two in one year, commemorates the act of Prophet Abraham who, according to the Quran, went to sacrifice his son, Prophet Ismael, after being commanded by God to do so. But, according to Islam, Allah was pleased by looking at Abraham’s faith and instead sent a ram to be sacrificed in place of Ismael.
Nafeesa Bano says she could not miss sweets or mutton and decided to have lesser stuffings as prices have skyrocketed. “Onion still costs 80-90 a kilo,” she says.
So livestock business is roaring, but other businessmen say their much of their stock has yet to be sold.
Imtiyaz Ahmed Shah, owner of the Wear House store which sells apparels, said business was “straightaway down 80 per cent.”
At the nearby ‘Pick N Choose’ department store, manager Bilal Ahmed said 50 percent of his Eid stock still remains on the shelves.
“The rush has been cut-half as compared to the previous eid,” he said.
‘Still Hope’
Mr Ahmed, however, insists overall business has come down by 30 per cent over the last two months.
The wholesale price index (WPI), India’s main inflation measure, rose an annual 6.46 percent last month, the fastest pace since February 2013.
The reading compared with a 6 percent rise estimated by analysts in a poll conducted by the Reuters news agency.
Moreover two days of rain in the valley, and hailstorm in some areas, also kept shoppers indoors, according to some. However on Monday, shoppers could be seen out of homes, although the usual excitement was missing.
And all the businessmen FreePress spoke to this afternoon said there was still hope till Wednesday when Eid will be celebrated.
“Two days are enough. Let’s see if we can make up,” Mr Shah, the apparel seller said.
