Bhubaneswar/Cuttack, Oct. 28: A large number of people thronged their favourite jewellery shops in the twin cities today to buy gold on the occasion of Dhanteras. This, despite the price of the metal having climbed significantly since last year.
Today, the price of 10gm gold hovered around Rs 30,000, up from Rs 25,550 this time last year.
Dhanteras or Dhantrayodashi falls on the 13th day of the lunar phase or krishna paksha in the Hindu month of Kartik. It is believed that buying gold and silver on this auspicious day brings prosperity.
"Everyone wants to make use of this auspicious occasion to bring prosperity by investing in the yellow metal," said Rajkishore Sahu, the manager of a jewellery store at Nimchouri in Cuttack.
Several stores have come up with various offers to attract customers on the occasion. Some offered attractive gold investment schemes and 100 per cent discount on making charges.
"The sale of pendants, chains, finger rings and gold coins of various denominations is quite popular. The sales are going good despite a rise of around 16 per cent in prices," said Keshab Sarangi, manager of a jewellery shop on Janpath.
Apart from gold, a number of people were also seen buying silver, electronic items and utensils. "My budget was only Rs 5,000. So, instead of buying gold, I thought of buying a new microwave oven. Shops are giving good discounts and I decided to make use of the deals on electronic goods," said physician Anshita Musadi.
"The festival does not originally belong to the Odias, but it is no more confined to any particular community these days. The time between 12noon and 2pm was the most auspicious to buy new items, especially gold and silver ornaments. I made full use of the auspicious time," said Surajmal Maheswari, a customer.
The traffic department, on the other hand, struggled to regulate the rush near major markets such as Nayasarak, Choudhary Bazaar, Jail Road and other parts of Cuttack on the occasion of Dhanteras today. The situation was similar on Janpath and at Chandrasekharpur in Bhubaneswar.
