Retail vegetable sellers go on strike

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Amritsar, April 28

Over a fortnight after MLA Jeevan Jyot Kaur directed the Market Committee not to charge any user fee from retail vegetable sellers active in the wholesale vegetable and fruit market Vallah, the sellers once again went on a strike today.

The trouble cropped up when workers of a private firm asked retailers to pay user and other charges for trading inside the mandi. There were over 300 retail vegetable sellers who sell farm fresh commodities on the road and claim that they come under rehri farhi category. So they have never paid any fee since the setting up of the market.

The trouble has been brewing since the market committee awarded the annual contract of Rs 4.56 crore to a private company for collecting user charges of various kinds from retailers, canteens and parking of vehicles inside the mandi on April 5.

MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla today visited the market to interact with members of the fruit and vegetable retailers association. Their stir was supported by fruit and vegetable wholesellers association. Ajay Kumar, president of the fruit and vegetable retailers association said their agitation would be indefinite and this was likely to cause scarcity of vegetables in the coming days in the city. He said over 300 retailers in the mandi had been selling fresh farm vegetables on roads without any shed to protect them and their merchandise from inclement weather and rain.

Retail vegetable sellers said the private company hired ‘goons’ to collect user charges from them which is likely to cause law and order problem in the mandi. They said the government was ready to collect user charges from them without offering them basic amenities like potable water, motorable roads and sheds among others.

Anil Arora, secretary, Market Committee, said after the intervention of Deputy Commissioner Hapreet Singh Sudan, the protesters were conveyed to lift their sit-in but they were insisting on giving them assurances in writing. As per the instruction of the district administration, the Mandi Board would first register all retailers and then allot them space, following which a daily user charge between Rs 50 to Rs 100 will be finalised.

The Market Committee is accused of not carrying out any development work in the market. However, its reason lies in the fact that most of the market’s area falls under the 1000-yard limit of the Army ammunition dump in the Vallah area. Within this limit no construction zone exists.

The ammunition dump is located on the Amritsar- Verka-Wagah bypass road and no construction or habitation is allowed within 1000 yards of the dump. Meanwhile, members of the all fruit and vegetable traders association have requested reduction of the no-activity zone from present l000 yards to 350 yards.