Surat: When Dipak Ghetia quit diamond polishing after nearly 22 years due to reduced work hours and falling income, he turned to selling ghughras, a fried snack, in July 2024.Starting small, he sold ghughras made at home from his two-wheeler and saw quick success. Encouraged by demand, he rented a shop to scale up production, planning to sell both from the outlet and on his two-wheeler. But the Iran war delivered a second blow in quick succession. Ghetia struggled to procure a commercial gas cylinder, forcing him to shift production back home and cut output sharply. “I used to earn around Rs 7,000 a day just before the gas shortage started. Now I struggle to earn even Rs 2,500 a day since I have limited resources at home and have to reduce production,” Ghetia told TOI. Before the slowdown in diamond manufacturing, the experienced artisan earned about Rs 60,000 a month. “My monthly earnings dropped to Rs 15,000 as there was not enough work available in diamond polishing. I then started selling ghughras,” he said. Ghetia’s story mirrors the plight of many workers and small entrepreneurs from the diamond industry who ventured into other sectors in search of stability but are facing fresh hurdles due to the ongoing crisis. Diamond cutting and polishing unit owners hit by reduced work and profits invested in textile weaving and embroidery. However, rising raw material prices and labour shortages linked to the cooking gas crunch have made operations difficult. “Textile weaving is affected by high yarn prices and labourers facing the cooking gas shortage. Due to high costs, production is affected and there is no demand in the market as well,” said Savji Bharodiya, a diamond manufacturer who expanded into textiles while looking for better opportunities. Hiren Dabhi, from a family of diamond traders, started a textile weaving unit with 600 machines three years ago. “I went into textiles considering the business potential. But in the current situation, the industry is badly impacted. Those with better holding capacity can manage, but people without planned investment are facing serious issues,” Dabhi said. For some, the shift meant repeatedly reinventing their business model. With 30 years of experience in diamond polishing, Kishore Suhagiya set up a live ice-cream candy stall on the Outer Ring Road two years ago. The gas shortage forced him to stop products that require cooking on a gas stove. “Now we sell more ice-candy, which does not require boiling milk using gas. Our business model has changed completely, affecting our earnings as well,” Suhagiya said. Trade union representatives say the crisis has deepened the distress of an already vulnerable workforce. “Workers in the diamond industry are in a major crisis, and those trying to find a way on their own are also facing challenges due to the war. Some were trying to do their own work to support their families, but now they are dealing with new problems,” said Bhavesh Tank, vice-president of the Diamond Worker Union Gujarat. With global uncertainty, gas shortages and weak demand converging, many who left diamonds hoping for relief are finding that escape routes are also narrowing.
