Maharashtra idol makers struggle as sales plummet

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 10 : The idol makers in Mumbai are struggling with their business after lockdown because sales have plummeted.
Ramesh Ganpat who has been running an idol-making business for 35 years in Mumbai spoke about the difficulties in business due to new guidelines. "We cannot sell idols taller than four feet, customers are still demanding idols like previous years but due to the pandemic we can't sell them this time."
"Restrictions placed on the height of the idols are leading to lower income for us. Customers are also less this year. Sales have gone down by almost 50 per cent," another artist told ANI.
Arun Naik has been painting idols and sculptures for 40 years in Mumbai. He said, "This time we were uncertain about the sale of idols because of the pandemic and lockdown. Labour is not available in the market. The transport was shut for so many months hence labour force who left the city couldn't come back."
"This year we have hardly built 35 idols for sale compared to 50-60 sold last year during Navratri," he added.
Maharashtra recorded 2,36,947 active cases and 39,732 deaths due to COVID-19 until October 9, as per the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).