“They came on Monday night and told us not to sell Chinese made Ganesh idols and warned us that if we continue to sell them we would have to face the consequences.” (Photo: DC)

Lucknow: With Ganesh Chaturthi round the corner, Ganesh idol sellers who have imported the idols from China are now in a quandary in view of mounting pressure to ban the Chinese goods. 

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is taking out a Swadeshi Sankalp Yatra to highlight the RSS campaign against Chinese goods. The yatra has travelled through Purvanchal and has reached central Uttar Pradesh. The yatra which began in Varanasi on June 28 will culminate in Ballia on September 25 after passing through 28 districts.

The activists are meeting traders and convincing them not to sell goods made in China. Lalkeshwar Tripathi, who is leading the yatra, denied they were pressurising people not to sell and buy Chinese Ganesh idols. “We are only trying to create awareness on the issue,” he said.

“They came on Monday night and told us not to sell Chinese made Ganesh idols and warned us that if we continue to sell them we would have to face the consequences.” In the last five years, Ganesh Chaturthi, which is popular in Maharashtra, has emerged as a major festival in UP.

The problem is “We had placed orders for the Chinese idols six months ago when relations between India and China were not strained. We will suffer heavy losses if we don’t sell our stocks. Also, there is no time to get locally-made statues ready by August 25 (Ganesh Chaturthi),” said Rajesh Prajapati, an idol seller. “I make up to three idols per day and my wife and daughter paint them. During the season, we make 300 idols,” said Ramai Lal, an idol maker in Chinhat area.