VASCO
The Mormugao Municipal Council (MMC) has declared the premises of Goa Sahakar Bhandar Vasco branch unsafe to conduct business and has even served an eviction notice, but the Goa Sahakar Bhandar continues to operate its supermarket in the weakened structure.
Speaking to The Goan, an official and some staff at the Goa Sahakar Bhandar in Vasco confirmed that the MMC had inspected the premises on April 17 after a portion of the plaster on the ceiling came crashing down on
Good Friday.
“The MMC served an eviction notice and directed the management to vacate the premises and shift to a safer alternate location,” said a staffer.
“We have been serving the people of Vasco for several years and directing us to vacate the place in 15 days and shift to another location is not possible.”
“We will not vacate the premises as we are paying rent from time to time and if MMC was so concerned about the staff and customers, it should have repaired the building when the matter was brought to their notice about leakage of sewage water for the last several years,” the staffer added.
When reminded that the building had become weak and could pose a serious threat to the staff and customers in the premises, the
official and the staff declined to comment.
When contacted, MMC Chairperson Deepak Naik said the council had issued the eviction notice to the management after an inspection of the premises on
April 17.
“The MMC has directed the management to shift its business activities to another location for the safety of customers and staff at the Goa Sahakar Bhandar in Vasco.”
“We have directed the management to evict the premises within 15 days, which ends on May 1. If by then, the management does not shift, we will consult our legal experts to go ahead and seal the premises,” said Naik.
“The building has been declared unsafe and given the present condition, it is not safe for the Sahakar Bhandar to operate from an unsafe premises. We are concerned about the safety and security of staff and customers and if anyone is injured during the eviction notice period,
the management of Goa Sahakar Bhandar would be held responsible for this,” added Naik.
