COVID-19: Puducherry turns its attention to vegetable market; vendors to get new site

From June 22, all vegetable vendors including wholesalers and retailers from the Big Market will function from the New Bus Stand. Arrangements for social distancing are being made.

Published: 19th June 2020 08:04 PM | Last Updated: 19th June 2020 08:04 PM | A+A A-

Large number of people throng vegetable market to buy groceries. This image is used for representational purposes.

By Express News Service

PUDUCHERRY: Vegetable vendors at the Big Market will be shifted to the New Bus Stand from Monday after they declined to go to the AFT grounds where they were earlier shifted.

Sub District Magistrate (SDM) T Sudhakar in a release said that this decision was arrived at following a meeting with Big Market Vegetable vendors at his office along with Commissioner of Puducherry Municipality, SP East(i/c), Executive Engineer PWD, Tahsildar and Station House officers of Grand Bazaar and Orleampet on Friday.

From Monday (June 22) onwards, all the vegetable vendors (wholesalers, retailers, Adikaasu vendors) will function from the New Bus Stand, he said.

Only groceries, fruit and flower shops will continue to function at Big Market.

Puducherry Municipality would make necessary arrangements like social distancing, water and other facilities for the vendors. PWD would put up barricading as was done previously. No vegetable shops will be allowed outside the bus stand. This will be strictly enforced by police and municipal authorities.

At present, very few buses are plying and that too from outside the bus stand.