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Consequently, the small traders involved in the handloom industryfeel that they are forced to buy Silk thread at exorbitant pricesand are finding it extremely hard to earn their livelihood. "Silk thread has become very costly. The weavers are finding itextremely hard to make both ends meet. But still, they arestruggling in an effort to earn their livelihood. A lot of themhave left Varanasi and gone," said Aman Mohammed Ali, trader. On the other hand, the retailers feel that the earthquake in Chinais just an excuse. The wholesalers have started indulging inhoarding silk thread and have increased its price by 15-25 percent. "The earthquake in China has not affected the industry. There isplenty of silk thread, which has been kept in store. Its price hasbeen increased in the market because of which the weavers are hit,"said Momin Ahmed Ansari, a trader. Ninety percent of the silk thread is imported to India from China.Small traders believe that the earthquake has not affected the silkcrop to an extent it is being projected. "The supply was slightly affected for a few days due to theearthquake that took place in China sometime back. The price ofsilk thread increased because of that and the traders were hitbecause of that," said Arun Agarwal, trader and exporter. The small traders are left at the mercy of wholesalers to supporttheir families. A lot of them have been forced to leave Varanasiand moved to other places in search of occupation. India stands second only to China in silk production. While Chinaproduces 70,000 metric tons of raw silk, India is producing farbehind at 14,200 metric tons. Officials say India requires 120,000 metric tons of silk to meetits share of demand in world market.