Salem anklets losing shine, makers in distress
Besides zooming prices of silver, ‘kolusu’ manufacturers in Salem attributed a change in people’s mindset, who have begun to see silver as an investment option and prefer buying it as bars, rather than ornaments
COIMBATORE: A sharp rise in the price of silver, driven by an acute shortage of metal, has left silver ‘kolusu’ manufacturers in Salem, a hub for silver anklets in Tamil Nadu, in severe distress.
Already, the Deepavali business, considered to be the peak season for ‘kolusu’ manufacturers, turned bleak due to a surge in prices.
“In fact, we didn’t get the metal from wholesalers for at least 15 days due to a shortage, resulting in a production halt. This festival season, ‘kolusu’ orders dropped to 40 per cent, of which only 20 per cent could be executed, that too with the already existing stock of metal. After a long wait, the shortage has eased a bit now, but orders are yet to pick up,” Sree Anantharajan, president of Silver Anklet Manufacturers Welfare Association.
Besides zooming prices of silver, manufacturers attributed a change in the mindset of people, who have begun to see silver as an investment option and prefer buying it as bars, rather than as ornaments, to a decline in their business. However, silver prices, which skyrocketed to a record high of 2.07 lakh per kg in mid-October, have begun to fall steeply in recent days.
From 1.05 lakh per kg on June 1, the silver prices increased gradually to 1.10 lakh per kg on July 1, 1.25 lakh per kg on August 1, 1.35 lakh on September 1, 1.70 lakh on October 1, and further to 2.07 lakh in mid-October, before starting to witness a drop in its prices.
Meanwhile, lack of work has forced many silver smiths to switch over to other jobs as daily wagers to eke out a living. “They will return to work only if orders resume. Migrant workers, who have gone to their hometowns in North Indian states, are on an extended holiday, as they do not have any work,” said R Mahesh Kumar, a silversmith.
Meanwhile, the manufacturers have sought to commence operation of the silver anklet multi-purpose centre built for Rs 25.29 crore on 1.20 acres in Salem.
“The complex inaugurated by Chief Minister MK Stalin in March this year should be brought into use by providing a subsidy to manufacturers. The purpose of the facility, to bring craftsmen with different expertise under one roof to boost business, has been defeated. It will generate work indirectly for 10,000 people,” say manufacturers.
Salem, the hub for silver anklet manufacturing, accounts for 60 per cent of production and employs nearly one lakh people in around 1,500 units.
Key hubs of production in Salem include Shevapet, Panangadu, Sivanthapuram, Ariyakavundanur, Andipatti and Selathampatti.
While north Indian states like Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Odisha are major consumers, the silver ornaments from Salem are also sent to Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and different parts of Tamil Nadu.
DEVIL’S METAL
· Salem is the hub for silver anklet manufacturers in Tamil Nadu
· Over one lakh workers are employed in 1,500 silver smithies in Salem
· Orders for silver ornaments was hit for this Deepavali festival season
· Shortage of silver has left silversmiths jobless
· Silver prices rose to a record high of Rs 2.07 lakh per kg in mid-October
· Currently, silver prices hover around Rs 1.70 lakh per kg
· Manufacturers seek to commence the operation of the silver anklet multi-purpose centre
