A silent Surat: No orders, dormant looms and no diamond polishing

The final part of the series looks at how industries are waiting for demand to bounce back

Arun Tiwari, 42, is a power loom worker who knows nothing about designer carvings that are manufactured for embroidery work on fabrics, saris, and dress material. But with Surat emptied by an exodus of workers, employers are hiring unskilled labourers like Tiwari, who, in turn, is relieved to earn Rs 250 per day. 
 
“My wife and I don’t have any money left to go home to Uttar Pradesh. At least the daily wage is something,” said Tiwari.
 
His employer Rasikbhai Kotadiya is managing with unskilled labour to keep his weaving unit in the Kim-Pipodara industrial area on the