NEW DELHI: After four cases of COVID-19 came to light in the Azadpur wholesale market, traders are demanding resignation of the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) chairman Adil Khan and the shutdown of the mandi.
The APMC demanded that the market should be declared a hotspot even as the chairman stated that market operations on Monday remained smooth and 7,686 ton of fruit and vegetables were traded. “A team of doctors are regularly screening laborers and traders inside the Mandi. We are regularly spraying disinfectants around the entire market and taking all the necessary precautions along with creating awareness among traders” said Adil Ahmed Khan, chairman.
However, the traders claimed that the market operation have been affected. “The chairman is lying. Most of the traders did not open for business. The chairman should resign immediately for mismanaging this situation. So far, four positive cases have been reported and one trader has lost his life. Why is then the administration not treating the area as a hotspot and turning it into a containment zone? This shows lack of empathy for the vendors in the market,” said Anil Malhotra, general secretary of Azadpur Mandi Vegetable Traders Association. With growing friction brewing between the traders and administrators, sources say a few smaller traders are planning to avoid visiting the market leaving it to the farmers to sell their produce directly to the customers.
Around 20 shops have been shut down after the emergence of positive cases at the vegetable and fruits markets. While at least three people have tested positive, one trader died, just a day before the market was allowed to be open round-the-clock. This has created an atmosphere of fear and panic among traders, but the government maintains that shutting down the whale sale market is not an option right now.