The Bamboo and Rattan Sectors in Asia: an Analysis of ... - INBAR

egular clients and relatives. Brahmins and Kshetriyas do not know any bamboo
work and depend on Dom/Chamar/Sarkis/Dushad castes for their needs. Most craft
workers are in the age group of 40-70 years, and the best ones tend to be the oldest,
between 60 and 70. Nearly all craft workers are men, although women among the hill
tribes are increasingly taking up craftwork. The younger people are choosing not to
enter the trade, and are seeking out better paying and less arduous vocations. Some
youths who have started bamboo furniture units have done so in association with
rattan furniture manufacturing.
Bamboo craft is not a full-time occupation: it is seasonal and sporadic, practiced
whenever the need arises. This allows the crafts people to participate in a diverse
range of activities, including hunting and fishing, collecting forest produce, and
working as wage labor in agriculture, road construction and brick kilns. Most craft
families are landless though some have small land holdings. This occupational
diversity provides some security in the event of a crop failure from inclement climate
or pests.
Bamboo craft workers have a number of possible outlets for their products. As
mentioned earlier, some work is done on a custom basis, where artifacts are
manufactured to order. Whenever the need arises, consumers place orders with artisans
in their village or in nearby villages. Every year, around October-November,
occupational castes visit their client villages to make various bamboo products (baskets,
winnowing trays, tools and traps, etc.). They are paid daily wages of Rs 50, plus
meals (US$1 = Rs 56.78) 4 . They also make storage bins (bhakaris) for which they
charge by the size (Rs 2/kg). Raw materials are provided by the client. These craft
workers usually stay for 10-15 days in a village before moving on to the next village.
They have proprietary territories and are very protective of them. There is also an
informal exchange system or barter trade prevalent to a considerable scale at the
village level.
Bamboo items (baskets, winnowing trays, etc.) are also sold in more formal
market settings, such as local bazaars, along with other goods. Customers come from
nearby villages to these markets. When the market is near a highway, travellers and
truckers from larger cities and from India purchase goods for themselves or for resale.
Typically at these markets, the craft people sell their wares, and those of their
associates, directly to the customer. Each craft worker may bring up to 10 large
baskets, 5-10 cylindrical baskets, 20-50 winnowing trays, etc. to the market per visit.
The scale of transactions is small. If a craft worker manages to sell all the wares
brought, he/she may return home with Rs 300-500, to share among associates.
There are also regional markets at Lahan, Biratnagar and Janakpur where artisans
sell their products to agents or traders who, in turn, sell to large farmers and to
wholesale merchants. The agents travel from as far away as 400 km from Kathmandu
4 All exchange rates quoted are, unless otherwise mentioned, as per Interbank exchange rate of 01.01.1997.
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