Commercial LPG Shortage: Filigree Craft Artisans Of Odisha's Cuttack Worried About Fulfilling Durga Puja Orders
Even as puja committees have already placed orders for 'chandi medha', the artisans are unsure of making them on time, reports Narayan Sahoo.
Published : April 25, 2026 at 3:25 PM IST
Cuttack: The war in the Middle East has caused a severe disruption in supply of commercial LPG and this taken a heavy toll on the centuries old Cuttack filigree craft.
The artisans engaged in the craft for years are now facing issues as they have received orders for 'chandi medha' for Durga Puja and have no clue on how to fulfill them. Cuttack, among other things, is famous for its Durga Puja and the 'chandi medhas' (silver tableau). Every year, the puja committees vie for the best pandals with some of them spending in crores for theirs to stand out.
The making of 'chandi medha' takes a considerable amount of time, hard work and attention to detail. Even as the artisans are working overtime to complete the orders, a major obstacle for them is the shortage of LPG.
Bijay Kumar De, a silver filigree craft artisan from Cuttack's Sheikh Bazaar, said, "The design of 'chandi medha' determines the amount of time that is taken to complete it. The artisans are working day and night to make the medhas before Dussehra. But the work has been hampered due to the gas crisis."
In filigree craft work, complex tasks like hanging and polishing of the silver are performed on burner and the stove powered by commercial LPG cylinders. For this, one LPG cylinder tank is required every 3-4 days. Since the gas is not available in the market as required, the artisans are somehow managing by borrowing cylinders from their acquaintances.
But the arrangement is temporary and the majority of them are procuring LPG from the black mater for Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000 per cylinder. The Sarada Bazaar Puja Mandap in the city has already placed its order of 'chandi medha' to filigree craft artisan Vijay Kumar De. The tableau will require around two quintals of silver.
"Due to the shortage of gas, most artisans are refusing to work at my workshop. Earlier, 15 artisans used to work on the medhas and now the number has come down to two to three," De said. Artisans like De are in a fix as the input cost of making 'chandi medha' has gone up even as the puja committees are not likely to bear the difference.
The designs of the 'chandi medhas' should have been finalised by 'Akshaya Tritiya' but this year it has been delayed. President of Cuttack Mahanagar Shanti Samiti, Devendra Sahu, said, "The artisans are demanding higher wages due to the gas crisis. Therefore, many puja committees have postponed the new design work of their 'chandi medhas' till the situation normalizes. Similarly, mandaps that had planned to erect new medhas are uncertain about its completion on time."
On the other hand, Odisha's Minister of Supplies Krushna Chandra Patra said there is no shortage of gas in the state. "No one should panic. A cap of 25 days has been fixed for booking domestic cooking gas in urban areas and 45 days in rural areas. Similarly, the state government has also directed the collectors of all districts to take steps to prevent black marketing".
Besides 'chandi medhas', over the years, jewellery making has become heavily dependent on gas-based technology. Earlier, artisans used traditional methods with wax and oil lamps, but since the early 2000s, commercial gas has become essential. Now the process of jewellery making is dependent on gas.
The situation has become complicated due to the shortage of commercial gas cylinders as artisans claim that no alternative fuel is available. The crisis is now directly affecting the delivery time of jewellery. The Odisha State Cooperative Handicrafts Corporation Limited (UTKALIKA) had applied for a Geographical Indication (GI) tag for the centuries-old Cuttack wire art in 2021.
The GI tag was granted by the Government of India in 2024. Wire art is a metal art. Silversmiths mainly use fine silver wire to make ornaments and other decorative items. Traditionally, the silver wire used in wire art is made by drawing a thin wire by inserting silver into a very thin hole. Later, the silversmiths use this wire to make ornaments, etc.
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