Sales of the heavily brocaded silk sarees made in the ancient city on the river Ganges are currently down 70% from the pre-pandemic period, locals say. Brocaded with gold, silver and copper, the heavy Banarasi silk sarees made in Varanasi, which is also called Benaras, are sold across India and overseas for women to wear at weddings and special occasions. Weavers say they are struggling with shrinking demand as the expensive sarees they make are substituted with cheaper varieties, as well as the high prices of raw silk and brocade. That poses a risk to the nascent recovery in Asia's third largest economy after the worst-ever contraction of 7.3% in the last fiscal year ending in March. He said earnings from about 6.5 million annual tourist inflows, estimated at 50 billion rupees in 2019/20 before the pandemic, could revive to 10-15 billion rupees this fiscal year if there was no surge in virus cases.

Source: bd News24 October 04, 2021 06:22 UTC