Curtains were drawn on the 18-day-long 31st Industries and Commerce Fair in Tripura Monday. The fair witnessed thriving economic activities pushing the sale graph northwards compared to previous years.
The Industries fair that commenced from January 29 last with a special focus on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s slogan ‘vocal for local’ had registered footfalls of over 5.5 lakh people. In a post-Covid scenario, the fair drew a large number of crowds consistently with noticed spikes on Saturdays and Sundays. The 18-day Industries fair provided for Covid ravaged economy to revive and thriving economic activities for last 18 days were a boon for part-time and small traders as well as established business houses.
The Fair was planned and organized meticulously on sprawling landscape of Hapania International Fair ground near Agartala. Rows of well decorated stalls, attractive illumination and scenic beauty added extra punch to the fair and people loved it. Apart from business establishment, several Self-help groups, and other livelihood scheme beneficiaries put up their products in designated stalls.
“Small-scale shops of imitation jewelry saw maximum gathering and there were several such shops catering different choices of womenfolk. Of course, sari shops of Bangladesh also attracted huge gatherings”, commented one of stall owners.
In today’s valedictory programme, Deputy Chief Minister Jishnu Dev Verma was the chief guest while TIDC chairman Tinku and other dignitaries were also present on the occasion.
The concluding evening ended after a mesmerizing cultural event.
Addressing the programme, TIDC chairman Tinku Roy said this year the trade volume was increased following spontaneous participation of buyers and sellers. He also said that the initiative for utilizing bamboo in various fields was the key attraction for the new generation. This year, total 323 stalls, including 19 international and 170 local, had participated in the fair and total sales was recorded Rs. 5.5 crore.
The volume of sales was Rs. 4 crore in last year and Rs. 2.5 crore in 2019 respectively. Tripura Khadi Board chairman Rajib Bhattacharjee, THHDC chairman Balai Goswami, TSIC chairman Shukla Charan Noatia and other officials were present. Meanwhile, 10 entrepreneurs along with Bamboo Mission and Tripura Ispat were awarded for their efforts in their own fields.