Printers see subdued orders for this election

The usual festive election buzz at print shops, usually seen after electoral symbol allocation, was largely missing yesterday for two reasons – absence of some opposition parties from the upcoming national polls, and rising reliance on social media for campaign.

Press owners attribute this decline to the absence of certain parties, particularly BNP, in the election. They claim that despite an increased number of candidates compared to the last three elections, orders have decreased by 30% to 50%.

They said most independent candidates are placeholders, are not likely to print many posters or leaflets, and candidates from other minor parties tend to spend less on campaigns.

They also blamed digital and social media for election campaigns relying less on printed materials.  

Electoral symbols for elections were allocated yesterday, kicking off a campaign window that will conclude 48 hours before the elections scheduled on January 7th.

The press area of Fakirapool, usually bustling during elections, saw a significant reduction in activity yesterday. Instead of election materials, new year calendars and diaries dominated the printing workload. 

Mohammad Anwar Hossain, owner of Fakirapool Coating Printers, told The Business Standard that in past elections with the participation of all parties, there was a surge in activity on symbol allocation day, with parties placing orders in advance. 

However, even though symbols have been allotted this time, no orders had been received yet, he said.

Golam Mostafa, the manager of Hridoy Design Fair, said there is a shift towards more online campaigning. 

He expected additional orders may come in from Tuesday.

Tofail Khan, former chairman of the Printing Industries Association of Bangladesh, said, "The election is non-participatory and candidates are printing posters just for the sake of it. There is decline in poster usage due to reduced interest in elections." 

The poster market, which was once valued between Tk300 to Tk100 crore annually, has now dropped below Tk100 crore, compared to its peak before 2008.

In the 2018 elections, with 39 participating parties including BNP, printing presses across the country were busy before symbol allocation. 

The 2014 elections, marked by the boycott of most parties, including BNP, saw a decreased impact on printing press activities, with only 12 parties contesting and a significant number of candidates winning unopposed.

In the 2008 elections, 38 parties participated, followed by 55 in 2001 and 42 in the 1996 elections, with all major parties, including BNP and Awami League, joining. 

Printing outside Dhaka

In Khulna, for instance, owners of printing presses in areas like Shantidham and Arafat Goli reported a lack of engagement, with few candidates ordering posters. 

The printing industry in Rajshahi, with about 60 presses, also showed signs of limited activity, indicating a shift in the dynamics of election-related printing work.

Swagatam Naskar, owner of Swagatam Printing Press, said the workload was less with three Awami League candidates having orders for 10 to 15 lakh handbills and about 1.5 lakh posters, expected to be completed by Tuesday.

In Bogura, Fazlur Rahman, owner of Al Samal Press, said they had received some jobs to print AL posters in various districts, but the pressure is not as high. Independent candidates are also starting to print posters.

Khairuzzaman Imran, owner of Moushumi Offset Press in Brahmanbaria, said they had not started work yet, but the district Awami League has already made contact. However, the expected workload is less than hoped for, as they received a job worth Tk6-Tk7 lakh in the last national parliament election.

In Chowmuhani, Rashed Siddiqui Shanto, the leader of the Noakhali District Printing Industry Association and owner of Gani Art Press, said until yesterday he had received orders for 10,000 posters from two candidates, while many other presses received no orders.
 

Our district correspondents contributed to this report