Due to the prevailing economic downturn, and the lockdowns, business had already received a blow with less than half of the turban-makers pulling on
Kabuliwallahs in Afghanistan are known to wear colourful silk headgears. Turban-makers in West Bengal’s Bankura district had been supplying these for over 40 years, but now, as a result of the current turmoil in Afghanistan, they are staring at an uncertain future.
Spokesman of local weavers organisation, Shyamapada Dutta said, that since the Afghanistan crisis began, over 150 turban-makers here are incurring huge losses. Based in Sonamukhi town known for its exquisite silk weaves, they are left in a quandary as a Surat-based agency exporting headgears has stopped sending consignments.
“Due to the prevailing economic downturn, and the lockdowns, business had already received a blow with less than half of the turban-makers pulling on. The tumultuous situation in Afghanistan has dealt the final nail on the coffin in the past one week or so,” Dutta said.
It became a flourishing business and around 150 weavers engaged themselves in the turban trade and the business continued for generations
Pakhtoons, locally known as Kabuliwallahs, used to visit the Krishnabazar area of Sonamukhi town, some 3,000 km from Kabul, to peddle spices, dry fruits, and for money lending purposes.
The town, as a result, became a turban hub over four decades back.
As their rapport grew with local weavers, who were manufacturing items like sarees, the Pakhtoons placed orders for turbans and took the initiative in taking their products to Kolkata and from there to Surat, an old-timer of the place recalled.
It became a flourishing business and around 150 weavers engaged themselves in the turban trade and the business continued for generations.
The headgear costs anything between Rs 350 and Rs 3,500, and a turban-maker usually makes around 20-50 turbans a month.
Businessman Nimai Pal, who used to take the product from weavers and send them to Kolkata, said though it was difficult to hazard a guess, approximately a loss of Rs 1 crore has been incurred.
“Though business had been down for quite some time due to factors like recession, lockdown, prolonged uncertainty in Afghanistan, trade was limping. The visit of Pakhtoons had also dwindled over the years. But now it has altogether stopped. The craftsmen will now be compelled to take up weaving other items,” he added.
A district official said if the weavers and traders approach the government documenting the losses and their previous income, the issue of financial support will be sympathetically considered.
