No 'Made in China' for Diwali

There is a Made in China in every facet of our lives and there is no denying that it has affected the livelihood of so many people, put off the flame of so many small scale industries. As irksome as cheap Chinese goods are, what really gets to one is when these Chinese goods start making and selling things which are so quintessentially Indian. Come festivals and the proliferation of this Made in China becomes all the more acute.

Ganpati’s made in China? And now as Diwali comes, even earthen lanterns, kandils, firecrackers are all being dumped from China. This is a sector dominated by the small and cottage industries, where households on the brink of poverty work on making lanterns and diyas. But today cheap Chinese goods are threatening to snuff the life out of them. Just do a google on Chinese Diwali diya and see the number of hits that you get.

The department of industrial policy and promotion, under the commerce ministry, had issued a statement that possession and sale of imported firecrackers were illegal. Though no country was named in the statement, the step was aimed at stopping the entry of Chinese crackers. But will this really help? Sivakasi, which is the hub of firecrackers is today grappling for survival.  Besides severely impacting the Sivakasi industry, which accounts for an annual turnover of Rs. 6000 crore, the products are harmful, especially for children.