MARGAO, JULY 27
Margao Municipal Council Chairperson Savio Coutinho on Tuesday faced as many as three morchas and gheraos by the traders and vendors of the New Market and Gandhi market, besides a city-based NGO over discrimination meted to a Goan worker employed by the Civic body.
While the chairperson said he is not surprised by the gheraos as they came on the eve of his birthday on Wednesday, the traders and vendors said they were forced to take the morcha to the Civic body on account of the failure of the Council to resolve their pending demands.
“I knew that these people would take a morcha to the Civic body or will gherao me or the Chief Officer. Last year too, I had to face similar situation on the eve of my birthday. This year is no exception either”, Coutinho said.
The Citizens Working Centre was the first to confront the Chairperson and Chief Officer Y B Tawde over the issue of discrimination by the Civic body in regularising the services of a Municipal worker belonging to the ST community.
This was followed by a morcha taken by members of the New Market Traders Association. They were protesting against the holding of an exhibition cum sale at the BPS grounds for two days without permission.
Gandhi market vendors led by Councilor Rajendra Azgaonkar also confronted the Chairperson and the Chief Officer in protest against the delay in lifting garbage from the market area.
Agitated vendors demanded to know from the Civic chief over the irregular lifting of garbage from Gandhi market and called for immediate action.
Azgaonkar maintained that if the city is to become clean, the Municipality should first remove garbage from the markets.
