After Afghan Conflict, Ukraine War Adds To The Woes As Essential Commodity Prices Soar In Kashmir

Savban Zahoor Khan, the owner of Muzzaffar Jewellers in Hari Singh High Street (HSHS) area of Srinagar, a popular and oldest market of jewellery shops, is sitting idle as no customer has visited his shop for the last many days.

¡°The Russia-Ukraine war has taken a heavy toll on our business and we have lost our customers,¡± Savban said.

¡°Last month, gold was sold at Rs 4,300 per gram it has increased to Rs 4700 per gram in a jiffy, and in coming days if the war prolongs there are indications prices will further surge,¡± he told Indiatimes.

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Parvaiz Gojwari, the owner of Gojwari & Sons Jewellers said that the business is nil yet. ¡°The marriage season has begun in Kashmir but the customers are shying away from purchasing after listening to the new rates,¡± he said.

¡°Earlier, we used to get at least ten customers in a day but now it is hardly anyone who would visit us,¡± he said.

¡°There is no doubt. The prices have hiked and it is running this Industry into losses,¡± said President, All Kashmir Valley Gold Dealers cum Workers Union, Bashir Ahmad Rather.

As the war between Russia and Ukraine continues, the rates of various essential commodities and goods have increased in J&K giving a tough time to the people.

Marriages Kept On Hold

With the beginning of summers in Kashmir, the marriage season also gains momentum, but this year many have kept the marriage plans on the shelf.

¡°We were planning to tie the knot of our daughter after Eid in May, but present gold prices have forced us to keep all the plans on hold,¡± said Mohd Yousuf Sofi, a resident of Natipora Srinagar.

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¡°We have now decided to wait till rates become normal,¡± he added.

Sahil Bhat, a resident of Nowhatta Srinagar said, ¡°I had decided to get married in June but now the plan is postponed.¡±

Various media reports said that ongoing war has pushed up the global gold price to $2,000 per ounce.

Accordingly, the fear of supply shortages has kept prices higher. Russia, which is a major producer of gold, is also expected to reduce the supply.

Edible Oil, Timbre Prices Soar

¡°There has been an increase of Rs 550 on Soyabean refined oil on 15 liters of box which is huge for a common man. People are now hesitating to purchase it,¡± said Abdul Rashid Mir, a wholesale trader in Srinagar.

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¡°We don¡¯t understand why the government has failed to take action against such violations and fix the rates, adding woes to the sufferings of the residents,¡± said Faisal Chaku, a local of Srinagar.

Mudasir Ahmad, who deals with timbre trade business in Uri, said that prices have surged due to the raging war between both the countries. ¡°There is an increase of Rs 400 on one cft of timbre,¡± he said.

Pertinently, timbre is being supplied to India from Russia and then Kashmir gets it from Gujarat.

Talks Fail

The talks between Russia and Ukraine¡¯s foreign ministers in Turkey on March 10 ended in failure, with no progress made on establishing a cease-fire or safe passage for civilians trying to flee the besieged city of Mariupol.

The discussions, between Russia¡¯s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, and his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba, lasted for one and a half hours.

Kuleba told a news conference that the talks had been ¡°both easy and difficult.¡±

Idrees Bukhtiyar

¡°Easy because Minister Lavrov basically followed his traditional narratives about Ukraine, but difficult because I did my best to find a diplomatic solution to the humanitarian tragedy unfolding on the battleground and in the besieged cities,¡± he said.

No progress had been made on Ukraine¡¯s proposal for a 24-hour cease-fire, Kuleba said, nor on the establishment of a humanitarian corridor to and from Mariupol, both for citizens to flee the city, and for humanitarian aid to enter it.

The battle for Ukraine began in the early morning hours of February 24, when Russian President Vladimir Putin launched what he called a ¡°special military operation¡± into the country of about 40 million. He claimed the Russian military seeks ¡°demilitarization and denazification¡± but not occupation; attacks shortly followed from multiple fronts and targeted toward multiple cities.

Fighting has caused over one hundred civilian casualties and pushed tens of thousands of Ukrainians to flee to neighboring countries.

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