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Grocery wholesale at Market Yard reopens after a week, strict guidelines for traders in Pune
APMC, Pune has issued strict guidelines for traders following the reopening including thermal scanning of those visiting the market, using face masks and restricting the number of trucks allowed to enter the market.
The Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC), a wholesale grocery market at Pune’s Market Yard, reopened on Monday, after almost a week.
The market had been closed since May 19 after eight people including two traders tested positive for Covid-19. The market was allowed to reopen following a meeting between Poona Merchants Chamber Association and the Pune district collector Naval Kishore Ram during which he also addressed the concerns of the traders about Covid.
APMC, Pune has issued strict guidelines for traders following the reopening including thermal scanning of those visiting the market, using face masks and restricting the number of trucks allowed to enter the market.
“As it is a huge grocery market with at least 400 shops, daily hundreds of trucks come to the market for unloading the goods. However, from today onwards, only 100 trucks will be allowed during the day from gate no. 5 of Market Yard. Our security guards will check the body temperature of every person entering the market through thermal scanners. Social distancing, taking all the necessary safety precautions like sanitising the shop daily, use of mask and gloves is mandatory for the traders,” said Balasaheb Deshmukh, chairman APMC, Pune.
Pune police department has deployed policemen and temporary check posts on the Market Yard road to monitor the vehicular movement and crowding. As the market was closed since the last few days, several goods trucks coming from outside Pune were selling goods on Satara Road. It has now been stopped and action is being taken by the police department.
Mahesh Rathi, one of the traders who has a shop in Market Yard, said, “As the market was closed since the last few days, we were not able to unload our goods coming from outside the state. Most of the trucks are standing outside Pune city on highways, waiting to unload the goods. It’s a relief now that the market has reopened and we can supply necessary groceries and food grains to the city retailers. At the same time we are taking all the precautions. All the workers coming to our godown are being sanitised. None of the workers living in containment zone are allowed to come for work and we are giving them full salary.”
Though the wholesale grocery market has reopened, the APMC vegetable market remains closed. It is likely to open after a meeting on Tuesday between traders and APMC officials.
