HT Correspondent
MARGHERITA, June 16: Mohammed Mujammil Khan, a long-time resident of Margherita Bazaar, has been selling colourful vermicelli for 40 years during Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha. However, he is now facing significant losses as fewer customers are purchasing his products.
Khan attributes this decline in business to several factors, including demonetisation, the introduction of GST, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the rise of e-commerce. These challenges have led many business owners and traders in the 83rd Margherita constituency to shut down their businesses and relocate to other states in search of better opportunities.
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Despite these difficulties, Khan remains hopeful. He shared that every year, he invests over Rs 2 lakhs in various types of colourful vermicelli, even though he has suffered heavy losses. He continues to believe that ‘Ache Din’ (better days) will come eventually.
Khan also highlighted the plight of more than 1,000 shopkeepers and traders in Margherita Bazaar. Many struggle to make even Rs 100 per day due to the decline of major industries such as Coal India Ltd NEC Margherita and the plywood and tea industries. This economic downturn has severely reduced the local income rate, resulting in fewer customers at the bazaar.
The tea, plywood, and coal industries once played a crucial role in Margherita’s economy. However, the impacts of demonetisation, GST, and e-commerce have devastated the business sector. Consequently, many educated but unemployed youths from the 83rd Margherita constituency in Tinsukia district have been forced to leave in search of jobs elsewhere in the country.
