Trade
4 years ago

City printers see heyday

Huge demand for campaign materials

A pressman checking clarity of an election poster being printed at a press in Fakirerpool in the city on Monday ahead of the mayoral elections — FE photo
A pressman checking clarity of an election poster being printed at a press in Fakirerpool in the city on Monday ahead of the mayoral elections — FE photo

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The printers in the capital are making a brisk business in the recent days following increased demand for printed materials, like - posters and leaflets, to be used for electioneering in two Dhaka city corporations, insiders said.

The operators, mostly located in the city's Fakirapool, Arambag, Zindabahar and Nilkhet areas, have been working day and night since the campaign formally began on January 10.

They also said most of the printers are providing necessary services, including computer graphics, paper, ink and publishing.

Despite increased cost majority of the campaigners are choosing laminated posters, as these do not get soaked in winter fog or sudden rain.

Besides, laminated posters help campaigners save their expense in the long run, as plastic wrapping ensures sustainability, they added.

The city dwellers will cast their votes to elect new mayors and councillors for Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) and Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) on February 01.

Haripada Saha, a worker of Prachi Printers in Zindabahar area, said printing of campaign materials has created a festive mood in the area.

"This is an unusual situation for us. We remain busy with typical printing work throughout the year, including printing of cash memo, challan, and visiting cards etc."

He also said there was a huge work pressure a week ago, as many candidates and their supporters thronged the presses to get their materials printed as soon as possible.

"No candidates seemed to wait a bit for printing poster, a key material for running election campaign, after their election symbols were allotted."

He further said most of the posters are printed in 18 inches by 23 inches size as well as in black and white as per the electoral codes of conduct.

According to his estimation, each poster of this size costs Tk 2.0-3.0 based on quality of ingredients.

Shaikh Masum Billah, proprietor of Masum Printers, said lamination cost for each poster is more or less Tk 2.0.

"We took necessary preparation in last several weeks to meet the present demand," he added.

Md Abul Kalam, Manager of Shorna Printers in the city's Fakirapool area, said they are still getting work orders for printing electioneering materials.

"Our workload was heavy immediately after the allotment of symbols by the Election Commission," he noted.

However, some printers said they are not that much interested in printing posters and leaflets, as they are afraid of not getting due payment or delay in payment.

Chairman of Bangladesh Mudran Shilpa Samity (BMSS), an association of the country's printing industry owners, Shahid Serneabat said the participatory election has created huge demand for printed campaign materials.

Though there is no exact number of printing houses in the city, around 2,500 operators are involved in poster making, he said.

Usually mid-level printers are best fit for publishing campaign posters. Small operators are not capable of doing well in the work, while large ones remain busy with high-value printing works.

"Printing of publicity materials is not an economic activity only, but it creates a festive mood for many operators also since many candidates are connected to them through friends, relatives or other means," he added.

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