Fifth day into the Games, but no Shera toys in sight yet

While vuvuzelas continue their run as the fastest selling Games merchandise, people heading to the outlets to buy Shera soft toys are returning disappointed.

When the items were first declared, it was announced that Shera soft toys would be available at the outlets, but so far, the stores have not received them. When Newsline visited merchandise outlets at the Games Village and the OC building, it found that the soft toys there looked nothing like the grinning tiger mascot.

When MNC executive Anishkar Roy visited four stores across the city, he did not find a single Shera there. "I wanted two of them. One for myself and one for my three-year-old daughter," he said, adding that the soft toys can be kept as a memento of the Games till the day he "grows old".

The absence of Shera toys was disappointing for most parents with small children. Mona Shukla, a writer, had visited various outlets in Saket but in vain. "When I was a kid and the Asiad was happening, my father had bought me an Appu toy. I wanted to do the same for my daughter, but I am yet to find them," she said.

However, Suresh Kumar, chairperson of Premier Brands, which is selling the merchandise, chose to differ. "We have sold 10,000 of shera soft toys till now. I don't know how you can say they are not there," he said. Nearly 21,000 vuvuzelas and 75,000 t-shirts had been sold by September 4, he added. For the Commonwealth Games, 75 merchandise stores were to be set up across the city by October 3. However, according to Suresh Kumar, "The Delhi Police shut down the stores 45 minutes after they opened. They again opened for 30 minutes, then for 15-20 minutes, after which they were finally shut down at exactly 7.35 pm."

... contd.

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