Chinese manjha cuts lifeline of Bareilly’s 200-year-old traditional thread market

Meerut: Bareilly's Manjha market, which is nearly two centuries old, is under threat due to decline in sales of traditional cotton manjha while demand for banned Chinese thread—a nylon thread coated with abrasive material commonly used in kite flying—surges. Shops are shutting down as the market shifts.
"In the past few years, the manjha business was affected by the Chinese thread. After any accident, the administration takes strict action against us, even though we don't produce Chinese thread, but the situation persists. Now, the thread is being supplied directly through home delivery online," said Anand Lal, a prominent kite and manjha manufacturer.
A shopkeeper, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told TOI: "I get a lot of demand for Chinese thread; however, I don't sell it, but I've come to know that many shopkeepers are selling it because the Chinese thread is cheaper than cotton."
Noor Miyan, another seller, said that since Chinese manjha entered the market, traditional craftsmen have been forced to change professions as they can no longer sustain themselves. "We used to make manjha while ensuring people's safety. It never cut hands, throats, or caused deaths. The manjha we handcrafted was supplied to several states, including Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, and Jharkhand. However, with the arrival of Chinese manjha, this entire business collapsed. Demand for Chinese manjha has increased, especially in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh."
He added, "Our craftsmen earn only Rs 250 to Rs 300 for making 12 reels. If Chinese manjha is completely removed from the market, labour wages will increase, and even the govt will benefit by getting GST."
Naved Beg, a kite manufacturer for 25 years, said, "All the traditional hubs for this business in the city have gradually disappeared. Now, this trade only leads to losses. We submitted multiple petitions to the govt, explaining that Chinese manjha is not only harming the business but also taking lives. However, no action was taken." He has been running his shop for 25 years, now plans to shut it down and switch businesses.
Arshad Hussain, president of Manjha Labour Welfare Association, said Bareilly's kite industry employs around 25,000 workers, with 7,000 small kite-making points and an estimated turnover of Rs 45 crore. He added that when police strictly enforce the ban on Chinese manjha, business thrives, but only until the banned thread resurfaces on the black market. "We filed a petition in the NGT in 2017, in which the decision was in our favour, and a complete ban was imposed on Chinese manjha across the country, but it is not enforced strictly."