Other attractive items, including cheap toys imported from China and other items used in rakhis, may not be able to decorate the country's market in the festive season this year, as the trend towards Chinese products has diminished. This is the reason why the businessmen of the country have stopped placing new orders for toys and lighting goods from China. Given the deterioration in relations between India and China after the Galvan Valley incident, the country's businessmen are cautious in ordering new import orders from China.
Rakhi, manufacturer and wholesaler of Delhi's Sadar Bazar and Magan Jain, said that the shiny items used in Rakhi no longer come from China, so the ash made from Chinese accessories will not attract customers on Raksha Bandhan this time. He said that any businessman who has kept the manga for a long time or who has a stock left before, will be able to use the Chinese goods to make rakhi, but this time the customers are interested in indigenous rakhis.
The ashes from the Sadar Bazar of Delhi go all over the country, but this year Raksha Bandhan has less than a month left, yet the market is not as bright as it used to be in previous years. Raksha Bandhan is out on 3 August this year. Jain said that due to Corona, Rakhi's business has cooled down this time.
In the festive season, demand for toys generally increases to meet the demand for cheap toys from China before the start of the trading season, but this time they are being cautious before placing new orders.
Toy Association of India president Ajay Aggarwal said that the toy retail business in the country is worth around Rs 18,000-20,000 crore, of which around 75 per cent is imported from China. Traders say that a big burden to stop importing toys from China is a toy quality control order issued by the Indian government in February this year, which will be effective from September 1.
According to an order issued on February 25, 2020, by the Department of Industry Promotion and Internal Trade, under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the use of the Indian standard mark i.e. IS mark on toys will be mandatory. However, this rule will not only apply to imported but also domestic products. Aggarwal said that although the order would also apply to domestic businesses, the decline in imports from China would increase domestic business, as traders would get a level-playing field.
Manu Gupta, a Delhi-NCR toy businessman and managing director of Playgro Toys Group, also said that the toy business in the country will increase, providing employment to workers, especially women. Gupta said stalling imports of toys from China would spur the domestic toy industry in the long term, leading to the Make in India and Self-Reliant India campaign.
While in the short term it is also possible that small retail traders will get out of this business because according to Variety, 80 per cent of toys come from China.
Ajay Aggarwal said that India imports toys from Thailand and Malaysia besides some other countries, but mainly toys are imported from China. People have lost interest in the use of Chinese goods after 20 soldiers, including an Indian Army officer, were killed in a clash with the Chinese Army in the Galvan Valley of Ladakh.
