Congress Minority Chairman Nazir Khan along with other local leaders while protesting outside the old fish market in Vasco. Captured by : Vikram Nayak
VASCO
Congress party workers on Wednesday protested over the delay in opening the renovated old fish market in Vasco and have threatened to forcibly shift traditional vendors in the market if the Mormugao Municipal Council (MMC) did not open the market in the next 45 days.
Speaking to reporters, Congress Minority Chairman Nazir Khan said the MMC had recently announced that the market would be opened but nothing had happened since.
"As a kid, I remember this old fish market as the hub of business where traditional vendors would sell farm vegetables and eggs and besides this fish, chicken and fruits were also available at one place.”
“Later, with the vegetables, fruits and fish market shifting to a different location, this place was shut down for a long time and only traditional vendors occupied the area outside the market and they later scattered to different places across Vasco roadsides.”
“However, Vasco MLA Krishna Salkar, while serving as councillor, took up this project and renovated the entire place. But there was a tussle between the then MLA and Salkar over credit for the development and the renovated market was closed again and gates were locked for many months now," said Khan.
Khan claimed that the MMC had recently passed a resolution and Councillor Shami Salkar had said the old market would be reopened within 15 days and the place would be allotted to traditional vendors.
“It has been over a month now and nothing has been done. They claim there is a a delay due to some technical issues and I want to tell the MMC that vendors sitting on roadsides in the hot sun have to be shifted before monsoons.”
“We can't just waste government resources and money and have a market that is almost ready and not use it. MMC can utilise the premises and even generate revenue from this market," said Khan.
"Salkar is an MLA while his wife is a councillor and we want to know why despite being in power, they are not implementing their own resolution.”
"We should not have fights for credit and claim over development and we are warning that despite our requests, if the market is still not opened in the next 45 days, we will be forced to open the gates and forcibly shift vendors inside the premises and allot them the stalls," said Khan.
