Vegetable markets open with ‘impractical’ norms

The government has directed vendors to conduct business in the open when no open spaces exist nearby

The fruit and vegetable markets are now open at 50% capacity, and the government has instructed vendors to conduct business in open spaces.

The vendors have a question: Where are the open spaces? Metrolife spoke to vendors at Russell Market, Malleswaram and K R Market to understand what challenges they were facing.

Why discriminate?

A senior official with the BBMP admits the government order related to markets is indeed confusing and discriminatory. “If they can allow malls with air conditioners to operate at full capacity, why not allow markets? At stake here are the lives of thousands,” he says. Markets are allowed to open half the shops, and vendors are coming on alternate days.

Russell Market

The areas in and around Russell Market in Shivajinagar are a mess, thanks to the Smart City project under way. Mohammed Idrees Choudhury, general secretary of the Russell Market Traders Association, says customers are not able to come to the market because of the dug-up stretches. “People find more convenient places to shop. The drains are filthy, electrical connections are loose, and the space at the back has become a haven for drug addicts,” says Idrees. Built in 1927 by the British and inaugurated in 1933, the market remains an architectural beauty from the outside. It houses 475 shops and the rent is just Rs 500 a month. “The existing cycle, two-wheeler and four-wheeler parking are all dug up,” says Idrees. Traders have asked the BBMP to take up maintenance of the market.

K R Market

K R Market has 2,200 vendors and only about 450 have opened makeshift stalls outside the market. G M Diwakar, president of the Vendors and Shoppers Association of K R Market, says many vendors have taken up alternative vocations in the last two months. “There are 25 different trades in K R Market and the government will have to allow the businesses to resume fully,” he urges.

The rents in K R Market are between Rs 20 and Rs 25 per sq ft, or Rs 1,000 to Rs 8,000, depending on the size of the shop. Some traders in the old building in K R Market say business is dull. Nayeem Pasha opened his vegetable shop after a two-month gap, and says he has lived on borrowed money for months. BBMP is not giving any rent waiver. Pavan Kumar, who runs his father’s mat business, says he is in dire straits. “My father fell ill and meeting his medical expenses has driven the family into deep debt. This is a family business and our biggest challenge is to keep it alive,” he says.

Malleswaram

The 80-year-old market is located on 11th Cross, and is maintained by the BBMP. It was to move to a BBMP market complex, but that has been under construction for six years. Flower-sellers occupy the footpath, leaving little or no space for pedestrian movement. Surya Kumar, who runs a flower stall, says he and many like him are waiting to move into the new complex. “We have been asked to carry out our business in open spaces by maintaining distance, but where is the place?” he says. “The shops are located in close proximity and the best we can do is minimise our staff.” Vedavathi, doing business here for 15 years, says the flower business will pick up only when temples are fully functional.