Mormugao Municipal Council (MMC) on Tuesday morning carried out an anti-encroachment drive in the Vasco vegetable market and the seized goods will be offered to orphanage and old-aged homes.
The MMC inspectors and labourers were seen confiscating all good, including fruits and vegetables placed on the roads, and loading them in MMC vehicles.
The drive lasted for over two hours and two vehicles were filled with goods confiscated by the MMC during the anti-encroachment drive.
Speaking to reporters, MMC Chairperson Leo Rodrigues said the confiscated goods will not be returned to vendors but instead, offered to orphanage and old-age homes.
“We have warned these vendors several times and we even sent them notices with an ultimatum of seven days, but they don’t seem to pay heed to our warning. We waited for ten days and finally when we received a lot of complaints, we had to act and carry out this drive,” said Rodrigues.
“We have seen that the stalls are empty and their goods are on the road and this causes public obstruction. There has to be some respect for the council and if they don’t care for our requests and warnings, we will have to initiate strict action.”
Rodrigues said the MMC had sought police security to clear the road inside the market.
“We will now mark a white line to know the maximum area they can use outside their stall and we will start fining them of their goods are beyond the line,” said Rodrigues.
“We will carry such drives in the future to keep a tab on these encroachments to ensure that there is no congestion and people are not inconvenienced. These people think that they will get good business if they keep their goods on the roads and we appeal people not to entertain the vendors who have their goods on the roads. We will not return the confiscated goods but offer them to orphanage and old-age homes. “ Said Rodrigues
MMC Vice Chairperson Amay Chopdekar said the council decided to initiate action after a series of awareness drives, requests, warnings and even a notice.
MMC Councillor and Market Committee President Vinod Kinlekar said the MMC was not against the vendors but they would not tolerate encroachments and congestion in the market.
