The recently-implemented Goods and Services Tax has had a telling effect on idol-making and its sale which would likely make this year’s Ganesha festival a low-key affair.
With the prices of raw material —Plaster of Paris, steel, coir and colours— going up owing to the GST, the idol-makers have found themselves in a fix. “We buy PoP from Rajastan, coir from Kerala and colours from Pune. With the recent floods in Rajasthan, buying PoP has become tough while transportation charges have gone up hitting the idol-making badly,” said Lala Ram, a manufacturer.
About 30 families from different villages around Jodhpur, who arrive in the town five months before the Ganesha festival, have been busy making the idols, despite the increased production cost.
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They have set up temporary tents where they live till the end of the festival, celebrated on a grand scale in the district due to its proximity to Maharashtra State. They have been regulars here since the last three decades and go back to their villages after the festival.
They make idols with 30 different designs and sell them in makeshift tents on Armoor road. The three-feet idol that used to cost ₹3,500 has gone up to ₹5,000 now while the five feet one costs ₹9,000. The bigger ones are being sold at ₹27,000. People from distant places like Nirmal, Jukkal, Madnur, Kamareddy and Metpally visit these makeshift tents to buy the idols. But with the rise in their prices, it has to be seen if the idol-makers manage to sell some of their creations this year.