MARGAO
With work on the erection of the pandals in full swing in the market complex, anxious vendors from the SGDPA mega retail market descended on the PDA building on Tuesday morning to find out what lies in store for them on the days of the non-stop public hearings in the market complex, beginning July 8.
Fish, vegetable, fruit vendors, besides meat traders and retail shop keepers called on SGPDA Member Secretary Ranjit Borkar just to find out what was happening as they were not been notified on the market closure to date.
Incidentally, the PDA Member secretary was candid in admitting that the authority was also in the dark over the pandal work underway in the market, promising to get back to the vendors after a meeting with the District Collector in the afternoon.
Having suffered losses due to the Covid -19 pandemic lockdown for more than a month and a half, the beleaguered vendors were apprehensive of the losses they would have to suffer in the event they stock the goods and the market is ordered closed.
President of Fish Vendors Association Felix Gonsalves said the PDA should intimate the vendors in advance so that they do not suffer losses. “We have seen work on the erection of pandals in the market complex. Hope they should tell us in advance so that we do not suffer any losses,” he said.
A vegetable and fruit vendor Sulaiman Khan said they have been kept in the dark about the hearing. “The authorities plan to close down the market for a hearing which has nothing to do with us,” he said.
