Team Herald
PONDA: Ponda is called the temple town as there are around 300 temples in the taluka — many of them are famous tourist destinations.
Many flower vendors were earning their livelihood at these temples. However, since the lockdown and ban on festivals there are no visitors at these temples. Consequently, the business of the flower vendors has come to a standstill, resulting in loss of livelihood.
Before the lockdown, temples such as Shantadurga, Mangueshi, Mahalsa, Ramanthi, Mahalaxmi, Saibaba and Kamaxi were drawing huge crowds of tourists, both domestic and foreign. But currently, they all remain closed for visitors, though they are open for daily rituals performed by priests.
The Ponda taluka is a huge market for flowers due to the presence of over 300 temples; therefore, not just the temple vendors who had good business, but the flower shops at the Ponda market, too. Now with the lockdown, all the flower vendors are having hard time.
Gauging the situation, some flower vendors have turned to selling vegetables.
Social worker Sudesh Narvekar said that the government should provide financial relief to the flower and vegetable vendors in Ponda, as their business has come to a standstill due to the lockdown.
He said that not just the vegetable and flower vendors, but all the small businessmen like bread-omelette outlets, fruit vendors, salesmen and rickshaw operators also are also suffering due to the lockdown. “The government should give financial help to such people,” he said.
