JOHOR BARU: Traders here are expected to see a boom in sales this Deepavali thanks to visitors from across the Causeway.
Johor Baru Little India Cultural Association chairman Datuk N. Nilaraja said traders were looking forward to opening up their stalls at the Deepavali bazaar along Jalan Ungku Puan here next month.
“While we were able to set up the Deepavali bazaar last year after a one-year hiatus, the atmosphere was very different. There were many restrictions back then and we had to scale down the bazaar.
“This year, we expect to see a dramatic improvement as the border is now open and the Covid-19 situation has gotten better,” he told The Star.
Nilaraja said apart from stalls offering a wide variety of food, festive goods and clothes, several performances and activities would also be organised.
“We used to have cultural activities at the bazaar previously, but not last year because of the pandemic.
“So this year, we will bring them back again to cheer the public. We will know the total number of stalls that will be available at the bazaar by next week,” he said, adding that the bazaar was expected to run from Oct 1 until the early morning of Deepavali on Oct 24.
Johor Indian Petty Traders and Small Business Association chairman D. Ravindran said about 30 stalls would be set up at another Deepavali bazaar at Tampoi Indah here starting from Oct 8.
“So far, at least 12 traders have confirmed their participation while many have also been inquiring about the bazaar. They have been looking forward to this for far too long.
“While we were still able to have a Deepavali bazaar last year, the crowd we received was a far cry from the ones seen during pre-pandemic times.
“This year, we expect things to be a lot better. Even if not as good as before the pandemic, at least much better than last year,” he said.
Ravindran added, “We received about 40,000 visitors last year, most of whom were locals.”
