Kochi: Once a symbol of excitement on the streets, the bicycle continues to conquer the market. With the arrival of summer, sales have increased.

The traders expect sales in Kerala to cross Rs 500 crore in the summer season alone. The sector is targeting additional sales of around 30-40 percent compared to the previous year.

Bicycles, which used to be the common man's vehicle, are now a bit expensive. Three-year-old children's bicycles are priced from Rs 3,200 onwards. Geared bicycles costing around Rs 45,000 are also in high demand. Bicycles costing up to Rs 10 lakhs are available in the market today.

Bicycle sales increase every year during the school summer holidays. Apart from this, traders claim that the use of bicycles has also increased among the youth who are now working in urban areas.

Along with bicycles, helmets, gloves, and safety equipment also sell well.

People in this sector say that there is a demand for bicycles after the Covid period. After staying at home for a long time, people adopted the bicycle as a form of exercise. With this, the sales increased and the prices came down slightly. India is the second largest bicycle user in the world after China.