VASCO
Vasco Police Inspector Kapil Nayak on Monday evening warned the Vasco vegetable market vendors that the police would be forced to instruct the Mormugao Municipal Council (MMC) to confiscate goods under police protection in case encroachment is not brought under control.
Nayak issued the warning to vendors during a surprise joint inspection by Vasco police along with MMC Chairperson Leo Rodrigues, Councillor Girish Borker and others on Monday evening.
Vasco PI Kapil Nayak said many people had been approaching the police to complain about encroachments in the Vasco Vegetable market.
"Sometimes, it is not possible for people to walk in these markets because vendors keep their products in baskets outside their shops on internal roads on both sides. This causes massive congestion and obstruction to the market-goers and this is why we had sent a staff to the market in the morning to clear the encroachment.”
“I came for a second visit with the MMC chairperson and I was shocked to see that vendors have again kept their baskets on the road and nothing has changed. I have issued a final warning that I will be forced to seal the shops with MMC labourers who will be given police protection and even confiscate their goods.”
“We have seen that many of the stalls are empty from within and their goods are outside on the road and we will not tolerate this kind of open encroachment of roads," said PI Nayak.
MMC Chairperson Leo Rodrigues said the MMC was struggling as most of the Municipal inspectors were now put on BLO duty.
“We have also got complainTs from many senior citizens and we carry out drives regularly but the MMC staff are not there in the evening and these vendors use this to their advantage,” said Rodrigues.
“Secondly, we are also short of staff since our municipal inspectors are put on BLO duty and we have now warned them very strictly that MMC will start a confiscating drive so that such encroachments are not encouraged.”
“While the stalls at the start of the market cause congestion on the main access road, many shops at the last end of the market also don't get customers and they have also requested us to initiate strict action against stalls who encroach the main market road," said Rodrigues.
MMC Councillor Girish Borker said the MMC must not issue any further warning but start acting without notice.
"This has been happening since the last 15-20 years and I feel that MMC must start confiscating goods without notice and such drives must happen once every week,” said Borker.
“The vendors are habitual encroachers and have taken authorities for granted and nothing will change till MMC starts acting very strict on these vendors.”
“We have told vendors over 20 times in the last one year but they don't seem to care and confiscating the goods regularly is the only option," said Borkar.
