COVID-19 impact: Ahead of Ganesha Chaturthi, sale of idols falls

Siliguri (West Bengal) [India], August 20 (ANI): Ahead of Ganesha Chaturthi, the idol makers in West Bengal's Siliguri said the sales of Ganesha idols have dropped sharply this year due to the COVID-19 induced lockdown.
Ganesh Chaturthi is just around the corner on August 22. Idol makers in Siliguri said they usually get bulk orders ahead of Ganesha Chaturthi but this year so far no such orders have been received.
They added that there are no major events taking place this year and so no big orders were received and people are also hesitant to step out.
While speaking to ANI, Arup Paul, an idol maker said, "The situation is bad, the puja is on August 22 and I have not received substantial orders. Police permissions will be required for puja.... we cannot perform puja at a large scale due to coronavirus pandemic."
"Usually, I get orders for at least 45 idols, but this year I have received only three to four orders so far. People are afraid of stepping out due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic," he added.
"This year due to coronavirus pandemic, the celebrations of all festivities have been minimised. There will be a small puja this year," said Bappi Shah, Ganesha Puja Welfare Committee, Bidhan market, Siliguri.
"The situation is not good, but we will have to perform puja. It's sad that the celebrations of festivities have reduced, let's just hope things are normal soon," said Tulika Paul, a devotee.
The 10-day festivities of Ganesha Chaturthi, the birth anniversary of Lord Ganesha, will begin on August 22. The festivities end with the final immersion of the idol of Lord Ganesha, called the Visarjan.
The festival is celebrated with much grandeur in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Gujarat among other states. (ANI)