Burmese traders who supplied goods to markets in Mizoram state, northeast India from Burma are in dire straits because of delay in payments by local retailers in Mizoram.
Ms. Tial Chin (25) from Chin state, Burma is one such Burmese trader, who used to supply goods from Burma to local retailers in a market in Aizawl, capital of Mizoram. She has been in this business for almost five years.
But this time, she could not go back to Burma immediately. She had to stay in a rented house for two months as her regular retailer has not yet paid her for the goods she supplied.
"They hardly make cash down payments for the goods supplied. Sometime, they delay the payment for two or three months. So I have to be here for a long time to get my money," Tial Chin said.
Like Tial Chin, there are around 150 traders from Burma who are into trading with India through No (2) Indo-Burma border trade road that links Mizoram to Kalay via Chin state. They are also waiting for settlement of payments for goods supplied to their respective local retailers. Some have been in Mizoram for almost two months.
In the Mizoram market it is very rare for retailers to make payments as soon as the consignments arrive. They are into an unusual system where there is no fixed time for payment.
"While we were waiting for the payment, the cash we had in hand was spent for food and staying in Mizoram. After collecting the payment, there was not much profit left for us," another Burmese trader in Mizoram said.
Moreover, the delay in payment has made business of Burmese traders slow down and become unprofitable.
Burmese traders into business in Mizoram are mostly Chins from Kalay town in Sagaing division and Chin state in Burma. They usually purchase goods from the Sino-Burma border areas such as Shwe Li, Muse and Mandalay in the central parts of Burma and transport them to Mizoram.
The supplied items brought into Mizoram from Burma by traders are Chinese made textiles, kitchen utensils, electronic equipments, cosmetic products, food and other domestic essential commodities.
Another trader from Burma said, "I supplied goods worth Rs.100,000 to a retailer in Mizoram but when I collected the payment from the local retailer he said that his business had not done well and gave me only Rs. 50 to 100".
Apparently, the payments are made only after local retailers in Mizoram have sold the goods that the Burmese traders supply, an observer in Mizoram state said.
He also said that it is not fair for the supplier to get payments only after the goods are sold. The retailers are blatantly exploiting Burmese traders.
Despite the little profit the Burmese traders make, increasing unemployment in Burma has left them with no other option but to continue the business.
"We know that the profit is not too much and sometimes we even lose money. But, we have nothing to do in Burma. That's why I continue with this work," Tial Chin said.
"If I do not do anything there is nobody to look after my family because there is no other source of income," she added.
