More than large industry, though, it is the ubiquitous small-time Gujarati trader who is being hit the most. And in many cases, the damage isn't direct. Earlier I would get at least 10 enquiries a day. Now, I don't get a single one. My sales turnover this year will be just Rs 20 lakh, just half of what it was last year,'' laments Pankajbhai, who leaves for home early these days-at 5 pm instead of 8.
Many entrepreneurs have no home to go to.
We've been badly hit, as many of our customers were from the Kutch region. His house, worth Rs 9 lakh, is in shambles, and he will need at least Rs 5 lakh to build another one. We can't contact our customers, who might have shifted,'' shrugs brother Suneer, holding a bunch of cheques worth Rs 10 lakh. Then there's Bipin J. Suratwalla. Not only has he lost his house, his textile machinery unit too has been damaged.