The Mapusa merchants on Tuesday said they were against encroachments on footpaths but had requested the Mapusa civic body to allow businessmen to display some of their items without disturbing the movement of the customers.
“We have asked the Mapusa Municipal Council only to allow us to display some items on the doors and walls of the shop and not to encroach or block the footpaths,” said Ashish Shirodkar, President of Mapusa Merchants’ Association (MMA).
The MMA chief was addressing the media along with the secretary, Assis Cardozo, Naresh Tivrekar, Amar Kavlekar and other executive members of the organization.
Continuing, Shirodkar said MMA cannot be hauled up for contempt of court because the association was never for the encroachment of the footpaths but only to display some goods.
“Encroachment means when you are not allowing people to move across on the footpath while display is like temporary use of space like our doors and walls,” he said.
The MMA chief informed that lack of business in the market was an all Goa and all India problem and not related to Mapusa only.
“Due to fear of contracting Covid people don’t come to the market and the cash flow is also less. Most market days have been stopped from functioning due to the SOPs released by the Ministry of Home Affairs,” he said.
He stressed the need of all merchants belonging to different associations to come together and place their grievances before the chief minister.Accusing the Mapusa Municipal Council for patronising the vendors but ignoring the merchants, MMA’s Naresh Tivrekar said despite having a separate vegetable, fruit, fish and meat market, vendors were allowed to set in different lanes with the same items.
