Source: sify.com
KOLKATA, INDIA, September 27, 2010: The recession may have ebbed, but artisans of the potters’ colony Kumartuli here say export orders for statues for next month’s Durga Puja festival have picked up only marginally compared to last year.
Kumartuli is a traditional potters’ quarter in northern Kolkata. The artisans here not only supply clay statues of Hindu Gods and Goddesses to the public pujas in Kolkata and its neighborhoods but also execute overseas orders for several statues. Last year the total export order in Kumartuli was 32. “This year we are marginally up at 37,” artisan Babu Pal said. Before the recession hit Western economies, orders used to number around 40-42 every year.
The five-day festival of Durga Puja, the biggest in eastern India, sees huge statues of Goddess Durga and her children being worshipped at public marquees amid much revelry.