VALPOI: Valpoi vendors marched to the Valpoi Municipal Council (VMC) office to protest the sale of vegetables by non-Goans on the footpath outside the market.
The local vendors threatened to take to the streets if the Valpoi Municipal Council fails to remove these outsiders from selling their vegetables outside the market. The vendors have served a two-day deadline to VMC to stop these outsiders from selling vegetables.
According to local vendors, the Valpoi Municipal Council has built the vegetable market in the town and added that they have been selling the vegetables in this market since past four years.
But since last year, some vegetable vendors especially from Belgaum and Karnataka have been selling vegetables sitting on the footpath outside the vegetable market; they alleged and complained that these outsiders have affected their (local vendors) business as no customer enters the market to buy local vegetables since last year.
“We will not allow any vegetable vendors to sit and sell vegetables on the footpath. We will take action against them, said Cynthia Mesquita, Valpoi Municipal Council Chief Officer.
A vegetable vendor speaking on the condition of anonymity said, “There is no gate or a security guard in vegetable market and cattle enter and eat our vegetables. Earlier there were around 40 local vegetable vendors and now there are only 15 vendors.”
