Aranmula: The flash flood in Aranmula has taken its toll on the most celebrated product of the locality - the handmade metal-alloy mirror. The artisans rummaging through the muck left behind by the water could only pick a few of their creations from their devastated workplaces.
Most of the metallurgists have lost their homes to the river that swelled for days. They also face a loss of livelihood as most of their finished products as well as raw materials have been washed away.
As many as 22 units are engaged in the production of the ‘Aranmula Kannadi’. Of these, seven units at Aranmula, Malakkara, Kanjiraveli and Paramoottumpadi had been completely flooded. The others have also been damaged.
The natural disasters came at the worst moment for the craftsmen, who had stepped up production to cash in on the Onam shopping. More than 300 mirrors have been lost from all the units. They had been made to orders from India and abroad on the occasion of Onam.
Also washed away were thousands of moulds and raw materials including clay and charcoal. The equipment and furnaces have also been damaged. Together, the manufacturing units have incurred a loss of about Rs 1.5 crore, the artisans estimated.
An association of artisans have petitioned the state government to compensate their losses and sent a memorandum to the central government to bail out the traditional sector, Vishwa Brahmana Aranmula Metal Mirror Nirman Society president K P Asokan and secretary P Gopakumar said.
