With the onset of Tihar, a crowd of consumers has started to be seen in the main market area of ​​Dharan. From morning to evening, traders and shoppers are busy in the streets around Bhanuchowk, Sabzi Mandi, Old Bazaar and Ghantaghar, the main markets of Dharan.

There are shops selling everything from flowers, garlands, lights, rangoli to sweets, nakshatras, brooms and clothes in the Ghantaghar premises. The shops sell everything from twinkling lights, plastic garlands, traditional diyas, copper and brass utensils, and seven-color tikas.

Dharan's grocery stores, clothing stores and even vegetable shops have Tihar items on sale. This year, as Tihar approaches, instead of green vegetables, his shop is covered with Tihar items and flowers.

Trader Karki says, 'As Tihar approaches, more Tihar items are sold than vegetables, so those items are on sale.' He has put up items like paints, clay diyas, twinkling lights, sweets, plastic decorations, flowers, handkerchiefs for Bhai Tika, mufflers, etc. He said, ‘This year, the business is a little less compared to last year, selling around 7-8 thousand per day.’

A shop selling Tihar items has been set up on the roadside of the Ghantaghar premises. Although shops are not allowed there at other times, they are allowed to set up shops for 7 days during Tihar. Traders not only from Dharan but also from the eastern hills outside Dharan to Saptari in Madhesh Province come to sell Tihar goods. 70-year-old Amit Shah said that he always comes to Dharan from Saptari to sell goods during Tihar.

He says, ‘I have been coming to sell goods from Saptari during Tihar.’ He said that with the start of Tihar, business has increased slightly since Saturday and there has been a rush of customers. He said that last year, the business was 20 to 25 thousand per day, but this year, business has decreased slightly. He said that goods have been placed for sale in the Ghantaghar premises since Thursday. ‘Business was low on the first day. Now it is 10 to 12 thousand,' he said.

Traders who have shops in other places also set up shops in the Ghantaghar and Sabzimandi premises during Tihar. Trader Asik Paswan, who has set up a shop on the roadside by paying 50 rupees a day, said. 'After paying 50 rupees a day to the municipality, you can keep your shop open for a week during Tihar,' he said. 'The most sold items now are Lakshmi Puja items.' People can be seen buying clay pots, lamps, seven-color tikas, clothes, dhakatopi and other items required for Lakshmi Puja everywhere in the market.

Although Tihar items are seen being sold everywhere in the market, Sayapatri and Makhamali flowers are not seen in the market. Last year, by this time, the market used to be filled with Sayapatri flowers. But this year, Sayapatri and Makhamali flowers have not arrived in the market. Laxman Bhattarai, market manager of the agricultural produce market in Dharan-13, said that there will be a shortage of flowers during Tihar this year. He said that the flowers did not bloom in time this year, and that flowers did not arrive from the hilly districts and neighboring India.