28th August 2014

Vinayakar Chathurthi festival triggers flower price hike

The increasing demand for the Vinayakar Chathurthi Festival have triggered price hike for arugambul maalai (Rs.20/- per maalai), flowers, plantain leaf (5 leaves - Rs.20/-), vilambalam (Rs.20 - Rs.25) banana, coconut (Rs.20), aval, pori, kumkum and sandal paste. Last minute Vinayakar Chathurthi shopping rush leaves people stranded all over Sivakasi town, yesterday. Hundreds of commuters were virtually stranded on roads as the jams extended for hours in four car streets of Sivakasi. Most marketplaces in Sivakasi remained packed and finding parking space was very difficult. Four car streets of Sivakasi was jammed in the peak hours of the morning as hundreds of families descended to buy arugampul maalai, thengaai pazham, vilaampazham and pori. Though prices have gone up 20% to 40%, it has not deterred Sivakasi customers from buying the essential things for the festival.