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Coffins ready to be sold at Supermarket in Dimapur.[/caption]
Dimapur, March 8: There are necessities and then there are coffins. This dark inevitability renders the case of those engaged in the business of making and selling coffins quite interesting—a necessity forced by tragedy.
Recently Eastern Mirror visited some coffin shops in Dimapur. One of the shops was (intriguingly named) Home Trust Coffin Shop located at the Supermarket complex. Established in 2007, the proprietor MI Temjen Jamir claimed that his was the first to sell ‘locally finished’ wooden coffin in Dimapur. Those previously available were made out of plywood, he said.
The 48-year-old man shared that before starting the coffin business he was running a second-hand apparel store. Inability to sustain his family from the earnings forced him to establish a coffin shop.
The price range of coffins sold at his shop varies from INR 4,000 to 1,50,000 for adult; while “baby-sized coffins” cost INR 1000 to 1500. Likewise, his monthly earnings range from INR 50,000 to 3,00,000.
Coffins made of rosewood—imported from Myanmar— are costlier, he said. “Some customers order coffin in emergency, even though they do not have money. I am usually lenient towards them and accept credits, especially the young ones who make orders for their parents’ coffins. But many of them fail to pay back.
“Some people take away the coffin and give their phone numbers, promising that they will pay after the funeral but they don’t. Some pay half and fail to pay the remaining amount. There are people who did that during November, it is March now and I have neither received the payment nor do I know where they are,” he said.
Currently, Jamir is employing 12 workers. “My employees earn about INR 6000 a month after a year with free food and rent. After three to four years, they earn INR 15, 000 to 20,000 monthly. But once they have over two years of experience, I help them set up their own store where they can earn on their own. There are eight shops in Dimapur, all of which I helped to establish,” he explained.
He said that his team could make about eight coffins a day (made of plywood) while the costly ones take about one month to complete.
Another shop (even more intriguingly named) was ‘Coffin? Yes Coffin,’ located at Supermarket. The shop’s caretaker, Khusheni Shohe said that ‘business was low’ with the shop earning an average income of INR 3,500 per month.
Located inside the same complex is ‘Omega Coffin’. According to the proprietor, Mhashio Ezung, the shop was established in 2000. His coffins cost between INR 3,700-78,000.
“We do work for the people, not just to earn. But there are people who think we are happy because someone dies. It hurts us, but we bear the consequences,” he said.
The 58-year-old said that he makes most of the coffins by himself. According to him, business is running low as there are many coffin shops established in every colony around the town.