NEW DELHI: The Delhi administration has condemned the move by the Haryana government to block all connections with the Azadpur wholesale market on Tuesday.
Due to the move from Haryana government, green vegetable prices could shoot up by 25 to 30 per cent in the national capital in the coming few days. The Deputy Commissioner of Sonipat, Haryana, passed an order saying that all the produce being supplied from Sonipat to Azadpur and farmers taking produce to the wholesale market has been prohibited effective immediately.
“We condemn this move by the Haryana government. Azadpur market not only caters to Delhi but supplies groceries to entire North India. Coronavirus is not a state by state disease, we could in return say that vegetable and fruit from Sonipat could have been the cause of the spread of the virus among trade agents, but blame game will not solve this problem,” said Adil Ahmed Khan, chairman Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC).
The order says that any farmer selling vegetables in Azadpur will be punished as per appropriate law. All routes to and fro Azadpur market into Sonipat have been sealed for this purpose. According to the Haryana administration, this was done to keep in check the spread of the virus. 21 corona virus-positive cases have been reported in Sonipat of which one person was working at Azadpur Market.
Meanwhile, traders continue to demand that the wholesale market be declared a hot spot keeping in mind the rising number of corona positive cases. The administration though, maintains that operations will continue as usual.