Following the shut down of sawmills in Zhemgang due to COVID-19, woodworking businesses slump further as more furniture houses are closing down in the district. Since 2019, of the five furniture houses established in the locality, three of them have shut down.
Once a very popular furniture house in the region, the Pradhan Furniture House in Zhemgang today is on the verge of closure. The shutdown of the only sawmill in the district last year has made the owners of furniture houses worry as they continue to grapple with a shortage of timbers and skilled workers.
“The main issue that we are facing is lack of timbers due to the closure of sawmill. Likewise, there are not many skilled workers available here due to the pandemic. And to make matter worse, Bhutanese skilled workers do not come forward to work,” said Lok Bdr Pradhan, owner of the Pradhan Furniture House.
“It was closed last year and they did not return from India with the prolonged pandemic situation. But we were told that the workers are planning to return, with the subsiding of covid cases,” said Singay Dorji one of the residents.
Like furniture houses, this has also affected the construction sector in the district.
“If there are furniture houses and skilled workers around, it will benefit the construction companies as well. We can do our wood works easily. However, the irony over here is, we are told that Zhemgang is rich in forest cover. It has over 80 per cent of forest coverage. But it is very difficult to get timbers for constructions and furniture as well,” said Dawa Gyeltshen, one of the contractors in the district.
Despite this, the remaining furniture houses claimed that furniture demands are still high.
“We are receiving high demands from all over the country and the only problem is that we are not able to meet their demand. We are only two brothers working on it and we don’t get additional skilled laborers from India. We are having a tough time,” said Lok Bdr Pradhan.
Zhemgang Dzongkhag has more than 94.17 per cent forest coverage.
Pema Samdrup, Zhemgang
