Poor council planning blamed for deserted market
The abandoned municipal market project in Valpoi.
VALPOI
The Valpoi municipal fish and chicken market project, built at a cost of crores of rupees, lies abandoned and deserted.
Residents have expressed surprise at the lack of planning and neglect by the Valpoi Municipal Council (VMC), which has left the market project gathering dust for over seven years.
Despite the existence of a designated fish market, street vendors have been selling fish and chicken in open spaces across the Valpoi municipality and as a result, customers have been avoiding the market.
Fish market vendors have complained that customers are not visiting the market due to illegal fish and chicken sales in other parts of the town, causing them dwindling business and heavy losses.
The fish market vendors claim that they have tried to bring this issue to the notice of VMC authorities, but no action has been taken. They have accused the VMC’s failure to address this issue which has led to the market project’s downfall.
The chicken shops on the first floor of the market have remained closed, and the area has been deserted for years. The VMC had shifted the vendors from another location to this market, but the business didn’t pick up. As a result, the chicken vendors abandoned the shops, and the area has been lying vacant.
Meanwhile, chicken centres have mushroomed in various parts of the municipality. While some centres have been granted permission, others are operating illegally.
