No spitting or smoking. You are being watched. Area under CCTV surveillance, read the large posters on the walls of the Panjim Municipal Market. The notice warns that offenders will be levied a fine of Rs 1000.

Ironically, these posters have been tainted with tobacco stains. This act of defiance by the 'paan' and 'gutka' chewers seems to have gone unnoticed by the 'CCTV surveillance'.

Unfortunately, for surveillance functional cameras are a must and the municipal market does not have a single functional CCTV camera.

A visit to the market provides you with the obvious. The delinquents have left their 'mark' on every nook and cranny of the market.

Speaking about the enforcement of the norms, Suresh Dalvi, a vegetable vendor speaking to Herald on the issue, said, “They haven't put the cameras yet. They said they would put it. But they haven't. They had a meeting recently regarding the installation of the cameras. But I don't think it'll happen. It's too expensive.”

Giving a sense of the ordeal that the vendors and shopkeepers face due to the incompetent enforcement, he further said “Just a few weeks ago, the power supply in the market was cut, leaving us in darkness. Only because they couldn't pay the bill.”

Rodents making their way through the holes made by them in the rear portions of the stalls and insects feasting on the dirt accumulated within the premises calls for attention from the authorities.

As you enter the market, the stench of garbage and stale fish welcomes you. When it comes to appearance, the market is no Shangri-La either. Besides the awful smell and tobacco stains, the municipal market also features garbage dumps, pest infestations and overflowing sewage. Every year, the rains cause the sewage to come flooding out of the open drains.

The scene at the fish market is no different. With open drains and flies huddling as one walks across the market, the sight is unpleasant. “They (municipality) cannot expect people to buy fish kept amongst garbage and sewage water. It's disgusting and unhygienic," exclaims a passerby.

The new municipal market, built in 2003, was supposed to be a one-stop shop for everything.

Unfortunately, its state has dwindled over the years. Although a time and money saver, people think twice before entering the premises. The defaced murals were once glorified pieces of art created by the legend Mario Miranda. The installation of the CCTV cameras was meant to keep these wrongdoers from destroying the murals and other walls of the Panjim Municipal Market.

However, neither the walls nor the murals have been spared by the tobacco chewers.

A group of youngsters recently took up the task and cleaned the murals, only to be stained once again by the offenders.

On the other hand, the CCP has lagged in its responsibility to install CCTV cameras and therefore the offences of all kinds go unchecked.