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At Gurugram mandis, Covid danger lurks in wholesale
Gurugram: The easing of lockdown norms and opening of markets is presenting a new challenge to the authorities that are trying to enforce social distancing norms
Gurugram: The easing of lockdown norms and opening of markets is presenting a new challenge to the authorities that are trying to enforce social distancing norms to contain the spread of Covid 19, which has affected 317 people in Gurugram and killed two.
All mandis selling food items have become a nightmare for the police since despite warning people are not taking precautions --- hundreds reaching in hordes, many without masks, elbowing and jostling to buy vegetables and fruits. Experts warn that it could prove dangerous since with a spike in numbers it is also getting extremely difficult to trace contacts. One infected person among the crowd could wreak havoc, they say.
HT visited three mandis early Wednesday morning only to find that people were not keeping masks on or maintaining social distancing despite being prodded to do so by the police and shopkeepers.
Sabzi Mandi, Sadar
There was no semblance of social distancing as hundreds were buying vegetables and fruits at different shops. Despite a barricade set up at the entrance people were entering with their two wheelers and rickshaws.
Raju Kumar, a paneer seller, was asking people to stand in a queue at his shop but buyers were not listening to him and some even went away peeved at his insistence to observe social distancing.
Another vegetable seller, Vikas Pandit, was struggling with customers as more than 25 people stood surrounding his shop, negotiating and asking prices of vegetables. “Since the guidelines were issued, we have been asking people to maintain social distance but people get aggressive and at times abuse us for asking them to do so,” he said.
Sadar Sabzi mandi is situated in a lane and most of the shops here are set up on the roadside. Hardly 20 kiosks are proper shops.
Amit Khatri, deputy commissioner of Gurugram, said that strict action would be taken against traders and visitors who don’t follow social distancing rules. However, on the ground there was no one to keep a check.
Khandsa Mandi
In April, the retail sale of fruits and vegetables at the Khandsa wholesale market was suspended after 24 vendors at the market had tested positive for Covid-19. Late, the district administration had decided to allow bulk sales from odd and even-numbered shops on odd and even dates, respectively. The step had been taken to ensure that norms of social distancing are strictly observed in the city’s largest market, which is generally crowded but to no avail.
On Wednesday, HT Team witnessed that the shopkeepers were not following odd and even formula. People were seen spitting and urinating in open and many were not even wearing a face mask.
Vendors at the mandi were asked to sell only fruits, tomato, potato, and onion in April to ensure only limited buyers will visit here. Heavy vehicular movement was banned by the district administration but despite that even trucks were seen loading and unloading the vegetables.
When HT team asked the shopkeepers of even number how they were operating on an odd date, they said nothing runs forever and that they only followed the guidelines for a few days. “Our business has already been affected, we have suffered huge losses. If we start following these rules and regulations, we will not be able to make our ends meet. The footfall has decreased since the lockdown was announced,” said Krishna Kumar, a wholesaler.
Vinay Yadav, executive officer and secretary of the Khandsa Mandi association, said that there are 172 shops including 119 large shops operating from the market. “We are regularly monitoring the operations in the mandi and we will take strict action against the offender found violating the lockdown guidelines issued by the district administration,” he said, adding that shopkeepers are facing issues related to their fruits getting rotten due to heat so they are opening all days.
The Haryana Agricultural Marketing Board and Khandsa Market Committee had banned the retail sale of vegetables and fruits after they witnessed crowds at different spots in the market. The committee had also decided that the market will remain operational from midnight till 6am and only 100 people per hour would be allowed entry into the market but the market is operational throughout the day and there is no restriction on the number of visitors.
School ground, Khandsa road
Green vegetables are sold in a school ground, 200 metres away from Khandsa mandi, as a temporary arrangement. There are only 40 wholesale dealers allowed to set up their shops and are restricted to operate from midnight to 6 am.
In the first week of May, people, including vendors, below the age of 18 and above the age of 60 were not allowed entry into the market as the district administration had included Khandsa Road as one of the 21 containment zones in the city.
More than 100 senior citizens were seen shopping vegetables carrying bags in their hand and most of them had removed their face masks and were not maintaining social distancing.
Naresh Saxena, one of the wholesale dealers, said that people are still not taking Covid-9 seriously. He said despite knowing that many cases were reported from sabzi mandi, visitors are not willing to wear face masks. “All the shopkeepers are using sanitisers after every 10 minutes and are wearing a face mask for our own safety as people are highly irresponsible here. Senior citizens often complain that they are unable to breathe properly due to mask so they avoid using it,” he said.
Police teams were deployed and were seen patrolling along with members of the Khandsa Mandi association. Despite fixed timings, the temporary market was operational and visitors were seen entering after 8 am, with many thronging city’s green vegetable market, disregarding social distancing rules.
Most of the visitors to these mandis complained about vendors hiking prices. “We come all the way to the mandi for fresh produce and cheaper prices but it is the same as retail shops near our houses, so what is the point of opening the mandi. The administration should look at this aspect which they are neglecting and shopkeepers are selling everything at a higher cost,” said Vaibhav Jaiswal, a resident of Sohna Road.
Yadav said they had penalised 85 traders and had imposed fine of Rs 85 lakh so far for violating lockdown norms. “We have distributed 5,000 masks and gloves in all mandi and we are regularly patrolling all the areas,” he said.
