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Victory Day flower sales slump in crisis

Suman Saha
Flower sales dropped by a half in Dhaka on the occasion of Victory Day from the previous year because of the ongoing political unrest, traders said yesterday.
"We have been hit hard by the political turbulence," said Farid Ahmed, president of Shahbagh Retail Flower Traders Association, a platform of 51 traders in Dhaka.
"Our sales figures are unimpressive although we expected good business on the eve of Victory Day celebrations, as people from all walks of life pay homage with flowers."
Demand for flowers in the city usually increases significantly during events such as Victory Day, Language Martyrs' Day, Valentine's Day and Independence Day.
"This year is an exception."
Traders normally sell flowers worth Tk 50 lakh a day on average in Dhaka, said Md Lokman Hossain, a former president of the association.
Transaction figures come close to the Tk 5 crore mark on the eve of any major festival, added Hossain, who is also the owner of Ananya Puspo Bitan in Shahbagh.
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However, the frequent shutdowns and blockades, especially Sunday's strike called by Jamaat-e-Islami, have affected flower sales significantly as most traders cannot bring flowers into the city from Jessore, Chuadanga, Meherpur, Satkhira and Magura, traders said.
"We record 60 percent of our sales the day before December 16, but it has fallen sharply as Sunday was a hartal," said Abdur Rahman, owner of Adarsha Flower Shop at Shahbagh.
Rahman, who is in the floral industry for over 7 years now, said, "I used to sell flowers worth Tk 1 lakh to Tk 1.20 lakh on the eve of Victory Day; but it has been slashed to aroundTk 30,000 this year."
Customers generally buy floral wreaths forTk 100-Tk 120 apiece on this day, he said. "But sales of floral wreaths declined by 80 percent this year."
Prodip Chouhan, owner of Krishnachura Pushpa Kendro at Katabon University Market, also shared a similar story. "My sales declined by a third this time."
The country has a huge demand for roses, marigold, gladiolus, gerbera, orchids, lilies, tube roses and some other flowers.
Industry insiders estimated flower sales, including exports, atTk 1,000 crore a year, and flowers are being cultivated on 2,500 acres of land across Bangladesh.
More than 200,000 people are directly and indirectly dependent on the floral industry.
suman.saha@thedailystar.net