Pandemic hits sales of national flag ahead of Independence Day

August 15 is near, but the sales of the tricolour at a `khadi' store here are yet to pick up amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Khadi Gramodyog Bhawan or `Khadi Bhandar' in Aurangabad sells national flags apart from various other products.

"Every year the sales of flags go up to Rs 7-9 lakh rupees in August," said store manager Ramji Sawant.

"But this year the sales have not yet reached even Rs one lakh yet," he told PTI on Tuesday.

The manufacturing faced a hurdle when the supply chain was hit by lockdown, he said.

The khadi cloth from which the flags are made is sourced from the Marathwada Khadi Gramodyog Samiti, the parent organisation of the khadi store, at Udgir in Latur district.

Coloring is done in Ahmadabad, Gujarat, while stitching is done in Nanded, he said.

This year the manufacturing came to a halt due to lockdown. Transportation too was an issue, Sawant said.

"So we brought 700 flags in the beginning of this month against 1,500 last year. But so far we have sold only 40 pieces.

"Last year we had sold around 1,200-1,300 flags in the run-up to Independence Day," he added.

Overall sales of the outlet too have fallen to Rs 20,000 per day as compared to Rs 50,000 before lockdown, he said.

"Customers are not buying clothes. They are buying only Ayurveda products (which also the shop sells) such as soap, shampoo, face wash and items of daily need," he said.