A campaign — “Boycott Chinese and Bangladeshi products” — has kicked off in the markets of the Cooch Behar district, near the Bangladesh border.
A group of traders on Tuesday, in Cooch Behar town visited the Bhabaniganj market, one of the largest in the district, carrying national flag and placards and visited the shops asking other traders, shop owners and customers not to buy products made in China and Bangladesh.
Bhabaniganj market has 4,700 shops including a section called Chinese patty, which has shops selling Chinese items.
The move comes weeks after the Pahalgam terror attack which left 26 people dead, and the subsequent Operation Sindoor.
“We have seen how Pakistan is backing terrorists behind multiple attacks in our country. China is apparently supporting Pakistan. On the other hand, Bangladesh has also become anti-India. Some of their leaders are making remarks against India. China is also helping Bangladesh. But still their (Bangladesh) products are reaching our markets… They are earning profits. This cannot be allowed. That’s why we started a campaign. We will visit different markets in the district and urge people to boycott Chinese and Bangladeshi products. We are talking to shop owners and customers as well,” said Pankaj Kumar Bucha, one of the traders behind the campaign and a cloth merchant in Cooch Behar town.
“So many products from these two countries are flooding the markets. For instance, cotton is coming from Bangladesh in bulk. Why can’t we use cotton produced here. Cheap Chinese electronic items are being sold everywhere. We urge everyone to use made in India products,” he added.
“We have held meetings with traders of different markets and holding talks with Cooch Behar Byabsayee Samity urging them to boycott such products. We will shortly spread this campaign to other districts too,” Gadadhar Das, owner of a flower shop in Natun bazar in Cooch Behar town and member of the campaign.
Bangladesh bordering districts in Bengal are flooded with Chinese and Bangladeshi products.
From Bangladesh, food products like cakes, beverages, cotton, plastic products, raw tobacco, different kinds of nets (fishing nets, mosquito nets and construction nets) among others come to India.
On the other hand electronic items, toys, decorative items, pain balms, undergarments, towels and bed sheets are Chinese products which enter Bengal through Bangladesh.
Notably, in December last year, the hotels in the Malda district, on the India-Bangladesh border, had decided not to accommodate Bangladeshi nationals, in the wake of the protests against the arrest of ISKCON monk Chinmoy Krishna Das, the allegedly atrocities on minorities in Bangladesh and also the reported dishonour of the Indian flag in the neighbouring country.