Firozabad Glass Bangle Furnace Blowing Uttar Pradesh

Firozabad in Uttar Pradesh is India's glass bangle capital, producing over 70 percent of the country's glass bangles and employing over 150,000 workers across the bangle-making supply chain. The process begins in beehive furnaces where raw glass is melted at 1400 degrees Celsius and drawn by skilled blowers into thin hollow glass tubes. These tubes are cut, bent over small gas flames, and joined into bangle rings by lac-sealing. Decorated bangles involve additional processes including gold foil application between glass layers (known as gold-flecked or zari bangles), enamel colour insertion, and stone setting. Firozabad glass workers from the Kachhi, Prajapati, and Muslim artisan communities specialise in specific tasks: tube-drawing, bending, lac-joining, polishing, and decoration. The festival bangle market especially for Teej, Karwa Chauth, and wedding ceremonies drives seasonal production cycles. Beyond bangles, Firozabad also produces glass figurines, chandeliers, and decorative glassware. The concentration of furnace facilities and skilled labour makes Firozabad one of the largest glass bangle clusters in the world. The UP government supports cooperative credit for Firozabad glass artisans through the UP Handicrafts Development Corporation.