VASCO
Traditional Goan furniture stall owners at the Vasco Damodar Saptah Fair on Sunday urged Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant and the authorities to provide rebates and subsidies to traditional carpenters and reduce sopo and stall charges at fairs and feasts across Goa.
Members of the All Goa Carpenters Association said traditional carpenters make handmade furniture and household items, unlike mechanised manufacturers. With only a small number continuing in the trade, they said government support was needed to preserve the craft.
A stall owner said carpenters travel across Goa to participate in fairs and sell their products. He said a similar demand for lower charges had been raised at the Margao fair, where SGPDA Chairman and Vasco MLA Krishna Salkar agreed to provide a concession of around 30 per cent.
The carpenters said they hoped for a similar concession at the Vasco Saptah Fair. They said the Mormugao Municipal Council had charged around Rs 850 per running metre during the previous fair, but rates had now increased, along with garbage collection charges.
The stall owners questioned the garbage charges, saying they neither sell food nor use plastic bags and generate little waste.
They said competition had increased while demand for handmade furniture had declined. They appealed for concessions and subsidies, warning that without support, the traditional Goan carpentry trade could gradually disappear.
