Winter arrives; Tibetans may not feel welcome this year

SOURABHA PARIDA Bhubaneswar, Oct 29: Winter arrived early in Odisha this year with mercury dropping below 15 degree Celsius in Kandhamal district last night. The beginning of winter in the city is marked by the arrival of Tibetan families from across the country who set up Tibetan Winter Markets selling a variety of woolen apparels. Tibetan woolen clothes have a high demand and the market sees substantial footfall as the apparels here are available at affordable prices. The market is generally set up in October every year and the Tibetan families stay here till the end of January and make a decent profit. But, this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic the state administration has imposed restrictions. The state government has not clarified regarding setting up makeshift markets/Tibetan Winter Markets in the city and no Tibetan families have arrived in the city. "They set up makeshift markets through their affiliated committees. No committee has approached this year seeking permission to set up the market and we are yet to take decision in this regard", said a Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) official. When contacted, an office bearer of the affiliating committee said, " We are not prepared to take risk in view of Covid-19 pandemic as winter is said to be more cooler this year". The products which are of almost the same quality are available in showrooms but at higher prices. The Tibetan Winter Markets sell good woolen clothes at reasonably low price and the best market for poor and middle class in the state. But this year no Tibetan families have arrived in the city to sell winter clothes, said Ratikanta Senapati.