Ajmer: The ongoing Israel-Hamas war has severely hit the tourism sector and the garment industry of Pushkar. Not only have the Israeli tourists returned to their homeland, but very few tourists from foreign countries are coming here due to the current situation. Thus, many labourers and tailors working at the garment factories in Pushkar have left for their hometowns.
Along with being known for its religious importance, Pushkar is recognised for its garments business. Garments manufactured in Pushkar are in great demand abroad. Infact, tourists from Europe, America, Brazil and Israel love garments from Pushkar.
Many foreigners place orders here and the garments are made as per the suggested designs at the garment manufacturing factories located in Pushkar. Even the factories located in the surrounding areas of Tilora, Pisangan, Jethana, Govindgarh, Ajmer, Nasirabad and Padukala cater to the foreigners.
There are more than 150 garments factories in Pushkar that engage around 6,000 to 7,000 tailors and laborers. Garments made here are exported following which, even the postal department and courier service companies earn a good revenue. But for the last 5.5 months, the garment business has been hit as there has been only a very few orders from abroad. The situation is such that due to lack of work, tailors and laborers are being forced to return to their homes.
Lalchand Khatri, a prominent garment businessman in Pushkar, said that the garment business started declining from the month of April. "Presently, the business has witnessed a dip by 70 percent. In Pushkar, 95 percent garments are made for women while only five percent are for men. Israel, Europe, America, Australia and Brazil are regular buyers of Pushkar garments. Post Covid pandemic, when the ban on Chinese goods was imposed, the garment business in Pushkar gained a huge momentum but when the ban was lifted, business was greatly affected," he said. Khatri said he had entered the garment manufacturing business in 1982 and owns three big factories in Pushkar.
Khatri said he was hopeful of getting some orders at the fair that is being held in Delhi. He said that tailors and laborers working here hail from UP, Bihar, Rajasthan, Delhi and Kolkata. Due to lack of work, most workers have returned to their hometowns and only 30 percent labourers are left. He said that the annual turnover of Pushkar garments industry is Rs 700 crore and there are over 300 retail garment shops here. Domestic and foreign tourists coming to Pushkar buy clothes from these shops.
Echoing the same, another businessman Kailash Malu said that Israelis who came to Pushkar returned to their homeland due to the war. Majority of the garment buyers are Israelis and the trade will continue to decline until the war ends, Malu said.
The raw materials are brought from Surat, Bhimandi and Ishalkaran while the designing and manufacturing are done here. Along with the garment business, the sectors of textile dyeing, printing, transportation, hotels and restaurants and grocery have also been affected.
The International Pushkar Fair is scheduled to be held in November. Traders associated with the tourism industry are worried over the turnout of foreign tourists at the fair. Hotel businessman Rajendra Mahawar said that there are around 350 small and big hotels in Pushkar with the per day rent ranging from Rs 300 to Rs 25,000. The hotel-restaurant sector in Pushkar witnesses a business of Rs 10 crore a month during the peak seasons.
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Mahawar said that hotel bookings for Pushkar fair starts two months in advance. But this time only 10 to 15 percent booking has been done. There is a possibility that these booking may even get cancelled, he said. Earlier, business was hit due to the pandemic and now it is the war, he added.
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