CAIT wants 'purely Hindustani Rakhi'; calls for boycott of Chinese products on Raksha Bandhan

The Confederation of All Indian Traders (CAIT) has called for boycott of all Chinese products during Raksha Bandhan festivities. According to the traders' body, this boycott will see Chinese traders lose over Rs 4,000 crore worth of business. The body wants to celebrate a "purely Hindustani Rakhi Festival", according to a statement released by the body.

CAIT is the largest trader's body in India. It is made up of more than 40,000 trade associations and has over seven crore members spread across the country.

The CAIT has also decided to send over 5,000 rakhis to Defense Minister Rajnath Singh. These rakhis would then be handed over to soldiers defending the country's borders.

"This time any rakhi made by China or any rakhi-related product from China will not be used! In order to encourage the brave soldiers who are guarding the borders of the country, the women's wing of the CAIT will give 5,000 rakhis to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh for the soldiers," the traders' body said.

CAIT has provided some statistics of trade over Rakhsha Bandhan. They say that every year trade of over Rs 6,000 crore takes place over the festival. China's portion of this trade is around Rs 4,000 crore. It is this business that the traders' body is planning to bring down to zero.

"Not only is finished rakhi imported from China but also rakhi-making products like foam, paper foil, rakhi thread, pearls, drops, decorative items for rakhi are also imported. Due to CAIT's campaign to boycott Chinese goods, no Chinese goods will be used in rakhi this year and we are confident that China is set to lose about Rs 4,000 crores of business," Sushil Kumar Jain, the Delhi-NCR unit convenor of the CAIT, said.

The CAIT has already sent out a message to all its state chapters and major associations working at the state level. The message instructs all members that Chinese rakhi or other Chinese products should not be sold over Raksha Bandhan.

The CAIT is encouraging small businesses to manufacture their own rakhis and sell them in markets to fill up the space that would be left vacant by the boycott of Chinese goods.

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