Ishwardi (Pabna) Correspondent :
As gold prices increase uncontrollably, buyers in the jewelry business have decreased. Goldsmiths in Ishwardi are in dire straits. On the one hand, their income has stopped due to low sales. On the other hand, goldsmiths are changing their professions because they cannot find work. In this situation, more than a hundred craftsmen (goldsmiths) in Ishwardi are living in inhuman conditions. Their work has almost stopped for a long time. None of them are salaried. If they work, they get wages. Now all gold or silver work has almost stopped.
Artisans mainly do the work ordered by jewelers and big shops. Some of them do various types of work including carving, stitching, design, and setting. Along with the artisans, small shopkeepers are also involved in these works. These artisans have been facing a difficult time for more than a year due to the continuous increase in the price of gold.
It has been seen on the ground that sellers are sitting waiting for buyers. Even if one or two people come in a day, they are leaving after seeing the price increase. This is the situation of gold jewelry shops in Ishwardi after the increase in the price of gold. On Monday (April 21), the price of 22-carat gold exceeded 1 lakh 65 thousand taka per bhori. As a result, the number of buyers has decreased.
Buyers say that the price of gold has gone beyond purchasing power. While people used to buy gold for needs and hobbies, now they don’t buy it even when they need it because of the price. Even when invited to events by relatives and friends, no one is able to give gold as a gift anymore.
Raihanul Haque came to buy a ring for his wife’s birthday as a hobby. He was shocked when he heard the price. He could not buy a gold ring based on his monthly expenses. He put it away after some hesitation. He said, “I came to buy a ring as a hobby. But after hearing the price, I could not buy it based on my monthly expenses.”
A woman who did not want to be named said, “We used to buy gold jewelry as a hobby. However, due to the current increase in gold prices, it has become impossible to buy it even for necessities, let alone as a hobby. The price of a nose ring used to be between 400 and 600 taka. Now it costs 3,000 taka to buy a nose ring.”
Meanwhile, the number of buyers has decreased, and the amount of work has decreased. Goldsmiths are also almost unemployed. Many have changed their professions due to lack of income. Due to lack of work, whatever capital they had has been exhausted. The craftsmen are not even able to tell anyone about this plight. They have never reached out to anyone. So they do not know how to reach out. In this situation, more than a hundred goldsmiths of Ishwardi Upazila, along with their families, are spending their days half-starved or starving.
Small shopkeeper and artisan Vivek Karmakar said, “I used to work at least 15-20 bhoris of gold every month, but due to the increase in prices, the work has decreased. Now it is difficult to get work of three to four bhoris of gold every month. I don’t know what will happen in the future. I don’t know of any other work.
I used to earn 20 to 30 thousand taka, but now I don’t even earn 10 thousand taka.”
Asim, a factory worker, said, “Without work, whatever capital I had has been used up. The work of goldsmiths increases in the two-three months before Eid. There was no work during Eid either. I am spending my days half-heartedly and without food. I am thinking of quitting this profession and driving an auto rickshaw or CNG.”
In such a situation, big businessmen are worried about the future of their business. College Road moneylender Sajib Karmakar said, there is no gold business, so there is no buying and selling. The price of 22-carat gold per bhori crossed Tk 1 lakh 65 thousand on Monday. Who will fulfill their hobby at such a price? He also said, if we don’t have orders, how will the craftsmen have work. If we can’t move forward, how will they? I don’t know what our future holds right now. I’ve left it to God.
Milan Karmakar, general secretary of the Goldsmiths’ Association, said that there are 78 shops, both small and large, in Ishwardi. The number of craftsmen (goldsmiths) is around a hundred.
Sabbir Ahmed, president of the Goldsmiths’ Association, said, “Shopkeepers and artisans are going through a very difficult time. There was no wedding at my shop on Sunday. Occasionally, a few buyers come to buy only nose rings or rings for children. And some buyers are only bringing old jewelry to get it cleaned. The artisans are sitting around most of the week.” We are not able to give them work. So many people are now choosing different professions from this profession. If this continues, there is a danger that not only the craftsmen but also the shop owners and moneylenders will go bankrupt one day.
