How COVID-19 & Amphan in Kolkata devastated lives and livelihood in potters’ colony Kumartuli

Kolkata’s Kumartuli – the colony of potters who sculpt deities throughout the year — is a picture of bleak emptiness these days.

Cyclone Amphan – that ravaged the city on May 20 – has affected the income of the artisans who had already been hit badly by the lockdown implemented to contain Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).

Sculpting idols for Durga Puja is the main source of income for the potters here, and COVID-19 has made everything uncertain in the coming days, leading to major drop in orders placed. Usually, by April and May, their hands are full and advance payments are also made each year.

But this time, no major orders have been placed with the potters. In fact, several customers who had placed their orders prior to the lockdown have even cancelled orders fearing a big slump in the market ahead. Will Durga Puja celebrations be scaled down this year? Where will the money come from? Will there be grand celebrations at all this year? Will the celebrations be affected by an economic slump? No one knows for sure.

Many are thus left without work at the potters’ colony in Kolkata’s Kumartuli – with the double impact of Amphan and COVID-19.

Following Amphan, a majority of potters now seem to be losing their only means of livelihood. Many idols have been destroyed by the cyclone and the incessant rains that followed. “Some idols couldn’t be shifted to safer places due to the unavailability of labourers who have left for their homes at the beginning of lockdown,” said Babu Pal, secretary of Kumartuli Mritshilpi Samiti.

The roofs of many workshops in Kumartuli were blown away by strong winds. He said that the idol makers have incurred losses of a minimum Rs 3-4 lakh due to the cyclone. That, only in terms of the materials lost. Add to that the hard labour that had gone into making idols and structures that are done well ahead of Durga Puja, and a huge amount of losses have not yet been measured in terms of money.

No major orders for Durga Puja has come yet. “This is a peak time for receiving orders. But this year many organisers haven’t yet placed orders. Everything is uncertain at the moment,” Pal added.

The artisans invest a part of their income for making new idols. But this time, they have no money left. “We are requesting the government to arrange some loans or a relief amount for us, so that we can survive and take up new projects,” he added.

Nearly 350 labourers who were unable to go back to their homes during the lockdown are being given food twice daily by the Kumartuli Mritshilpi Samiti. Talking about resuming work, Pal said that they are planning to resume work from next month. “We have to start working again. Otherwise it is becoming impossible for us to sustain ourselves. We are not even getting food to eat,” he said.