People, mostly women, thronged markets in the national capital for last-minute shopping on Raksha Bandhan on Thursday, with sweets shops in several areas decked up with colourful tents to woo customers.

However, several traders and market associations did not appear pleased with the response, and said that the sales were not good due to ''inflation''. The markets in Shahdara's Bhola Nath Nagar and Chandni Chowk witnessed a shoppers' rush with lanes crammed with two-wheelers and women bargaining to get the desired prices for sweets and rakhis. ''I have travelled from Meerut. My brother lives in Shahdara. As I did not get the time to buy rakhi, I have decided to purchase it from the market here before going to his home,'' said Rakesh (40), who grew up in these lanes of East Delhi. The shopkeepers were also trying to sell the maximum stock by giving discounts. ''I am offering discounts as I want to clear my stock by today. There is no use of them after that,'' said a rakhi vendor.

To lure customers, several sweets shops put up extra tables and erected tents outside their establishments. Many employees were seen working in a hurrying manner to complete the orders of customers. In several markets, including Chandni Chowk and Lajpat Nagar, mehndi designers were seen sitting with a booklet of designs.

However, Lajpat Nagar Market Association felt the inflation played its role in damping the spirit of the festival. Ashwani Marwah, general secretary of the traders' association in Lajpat Nagar, said it appeared like a Monday in the market on Raksha Bandhan. The Lajpat Nagar market remains closed on Monday.

''Yesterday, there was high footfall but today the business was really down. This is because of the increasing inflation,'' Marwah claimed.

Traders at Chandni Chowk said that the business is usually quite dull on the day of Raksha Bandhan. ''There are few people who do last-minute shopping. Usually, the day of Raksha Bandhan is dull for business,'' a trader said. Anticipating a rush of passengers on Thursday, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) made additional arrangements to ensure their smooth travel, officials said.

On Raksha Bandhan, the DMRC deployed 169 additional ticket office machines and 65 customer facilitation agents to cater to the additional rush of passengers, they said.

Delhi's wholesale markets would remain closed on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, a traders' body had said on Wednesday.

Wholesale markets, including Gandhi Nagar, Kashmere Gate, Bhagirath Place Electric Market, Chandni Chowk Kucha Mahajani Market, Chawri Bazar Steel Market, Naya Bazar, and Khari Baoli, among others, will remain closed on August 11, while retail shops on main road in Chandni Chowk and Sadar Bazar will remain open, it said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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