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Garbage at Ludhiana veggie market keeping customers away

ByRakshit Sharma, Ludhiana
Jun 17, 2024 09:09 PM IST

While all the vegetables and fruits were available at the market in Ludhiana at wholesale prices, many customers claimed that they preferred getting groceries from the comparatively cleaner markets elsewhere

The sabzi mandi (vegetable and fruit market) in the city is mostly littered with waste and plastic bags, keeping customers away.

District mandi officer says he has asked market committee to take action against contractor in Ludhiana. (Gurpreet Singh/HT )
District mandi officer says he has asked market committee to take action against contractor in Ludhiana. (Gurpreet Singh/HT )

While all the vegetables and fruits were available at the market at wholesale prices, many customers claimed that they preferred getting groceries from the comparatively cleaner markets elsewhere.

“How can you get eatables from a place that has garbage lying around,” questioned Sonia Mongia, a local.

“I would pay extra and buy from a market that is cleaner. At least I won’t feel the guilt of buying from the filthy mandi,” she added.

Vendors at the mandi claim that if the place was better kept, people would prefer getting supplies from here and would also save money. “Where do the shops these people get their groceries from get the veggies? We supply the items to them. If the mandi was clean, they (consumers) would come directly to us.”

District mandi officer Gurmatpal Singh acknowledged the poor state of cleanliness at the mandi and said, “I paid two visits to the market recently. On both occasions, I asked the market committee to take action against the contractor responsible for keeping the market clean.”

Market committee secretary Vinod Kumar also acknowledged the problem and claimed that the contractor had been fined as well.

“I have fined the contractor twice in the last two months. In May, I fined them 30,000 and ten days ago, I put a fine of 45,000,” he said.

“The sweepers skip daily shifts at times. We have a couple of supervisors at the mandi, who report the situation on a regular basis. Based on that, we take action against the contractor,” he added.

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