Panjim: The rotten vegetables and fruits dumped at the Panjim municipal market has raised questions about hygiene, especially in view of COVID-19 pandemic. Stacks of spoilt perishable supplies inside the complex have also been emanating foul smell with visible worms.
City Mayor Uday Madkaikar justified that some of elderly vendors had failed to clear their allotted space, which has resulted in the problem. “Before resuming the market on odd-even system, we had opened the complex for cleanliness. All the vendors were asked to clear their space. However, those who are aged could not come and therefore, their old stock of perishable goods remained inside. We are getting it cleared now,” he told Herald.
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A video of the spoilt goods has been going viral which caught the attention of the people. A source said due to unforeseen lockdown imposed in March, the stocks remained inside. These were recently cleared when Goa was granted further relaxation in 3.0 lockdown.
The Mayor also denied allegations that cleaning of the complex was carried out without chemical spray. “The fire brigade personnel sprayed chemical to sanitise the place. Corporation of City of Panaji (CCP) has also been regularly carrying out chemical sanitization to ensure complete hygiene,” Madkaikar said.
The market reopened mid-last week from 8 am to 6 pm only. No tobacco or smokeless tobacco product sale is being allowed in the market and proper demarcation of space for vendors has been done. The Mayor has urged the people as well as vendors to abide by all the guidelines including mandatory wearing of masks and maintaining social distancing during the purchase.
