Prayagraj Diwali Markets: Local Goods Hold 68% of Festive Sales, Traders Say

Locally made goods now account for roughly 68% of festive sales in Prayagraj's markets this Diwali season, according to Mahendra Goyal, Uttar Pradesh president of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT). He expects the share to pass 75% before the season ends, as shoppers swap imported decor for earthen diyas, cow-dung lamps, moonj-grass torans and millet-based sweets.

The shift follows a Diwali appeal by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 139th episode of Mann Ki Baat, urging people to buy from local artisans. Goyal also credits rising digital awareness, which he says is steering buyers toward eco-friendly products and away from plastic idols and imported lights. These figures come from trade bodies and officials, not an independent survey.

The morning-briefing numbers for traders are strong. A CAIT report puts Navratri-period turnover in the city at about Rs 570 crore. Real estate led with Rs 265 crore, ahead of automobiles at Rs 55 crore and garments at Rs 35 crore. Electronics brought in Rs 32 crore, furniture Rs 28 crore, and sweets and prasad Rs 15 crore.

Traders expect Dhanteras and Diwali to bring two to two-and-a-half times that volume, with the whole festive season projected at around Rs 1,425 crore. Bullion dealers are especially upbeat, since recent global market swings and a dip in gold and silver prices could pull buyers in.

Prayag Vyapar Mandal president Rana Chawla said footfall is up 17-19% on previous years. He pointed to rising GST collections as a sign of faster business growth and said wider digital payments are shrinking the parallel cash economy. Traders link the spending to income growth, citing a nearly 27% rise in Prayagraj's per capita income over three years.

The local-goods trend is also creating work. Shama Singh, deputy commissioner of the Livelihood Mission, said women-led self-help groups have made 2.5 lakh cow-dung lamps for Shringverpur and 1.5 lakh for Bharadwaj Ashram as part of the district's Deepotsav. In all, 5,500 women from 450 groups are involved.

Another 200-plus women linked to the District Urban Development Agency are making lamps, Lakshmi and Ganesha idols, torans and bandhanwars, and have been given stalls in Civil Lines. For small producers, a festival-driven demand cycle that rewards homemade goods could be a useful test of how far the local-first push can go beyond Diwali.

Source: Times of India

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