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Prices soar as Dehradun’s biggest vegetables market remains shut over Covid-19 cases
The district administration shut down the Niranjanpur Mandi in Dehradun after five cases of Covid-19 were reported from the market.
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Prices of vegetables and fruits in Dehradun have gone up following the closure of the biggest vegetable and fruit market in the city after several cases of Covid-19 emerged from it.
The Niranjanpur Mandi located on Saharanpur road was closed down a few days ago by the district administration after five cases of Covid-19 were reported from there. The mandi is the biggest wholesale one in the city where the majority of the vegetables and fruits is received from different parts of the state and country. The closure of the market for over a week has gradually resulted in the increase in retail prices of vegetables and fruits.
Gajendra Singh, a retail seller of fruits and vegetables near the mandi said, “The closure of the mandi has posed a challenge for us to arrange a supply for the shop. Earlier we used to buy from the whole sellers in the Mandi, but now we have to arrange it from elsewhere.”
Singh said, “The action has resulted in an increase in retail prices of vegetables and fruits in the market especially fruits.”
“A few days ago, the price of 1.5 kg mangoes was ₹100 but now it’s ₹80 for a kg. Similarly the price of bananas which was ₹40 a dozen is now about ₹50-60 a dozen,” he said.
Amid the closure of the Niranjanpur Mandi, the district administration has established a temporary mandi in Maldevta area of the city from where the vegetables and fruits are being supplied at present. But the supply has fallen short of the city’s requirement.
A mandi official on condition of anonymity said, “The total requirement of the city is about 4,000 kg of vegetables per day. However, due to the closure of the Niranjanpur mandi, the supply is now about little more than half per day. We hope soon it will be resolved.”
Meanwhile on Sunday, the Dehradun Municipal Corporation (DMC) continued its sanitisation programme for the second day of complete closure of the city amid a rising number of Covid-19 cases.
On Sunday, the city was closed as per the decision of the Uttarakhand government to carry extensive sanitisation in all the public places including markets, streets, colonies and shops. No shops, liquor shops, were allowed to open apart from the complete prohibition of movement of vehicles. Only the shops of essential items were allowed to open. The vehicles involved in essential services were the only ones allowed to ply on the roads.
