Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
Vegetable market is important destinations of citizens to garner and gather different vegetables for consumption at home. Most of times elders, reach there and bought out relevant vegetables in order to make way for preparation of dishes at home. With the advent of nabakallebar of Lord Jagannath, various spaces in and around the Jagannath temple of Puri are now widened. This is related to security concern. If one looks at the number of shops in and around Puri temple are unbelievable to understand as we can know how such small shops are allowed in these locations at the first place. Entire area is now squeezed into a very narrow place which was once better known as wider place and a brilliant area where most of the devotees come and take the blessing of the Almighty.
In recent years, due to order of honorable High Court of Odisha, the surroundings in and around Temple of Jagannath of Puri needs to be sanitized and cordoned of mainly for the reason of security concerns as well as for the reason of creating wider space in and around temple area. If you have ever gone to Puri town and near to the main temple you will find one market namely Laxmi market where, the biggest vegetable market of in and around the district of Puri can be seen and experienced.
There are just so many people in and around roaming there and without any security concerns. Hoards of vegetables are gathered for auction in Laxmi market nearer to Puri Jagannath temple and most of retail business persons reach there at the morning time before sunrise and flock foods and gathered all vegetables from there and goes back to other markets to sell these vegetables at different locations.
Now, with the order of honorable High Court, that market now needs to be closed and to be shifted at some other location, which government is wanting to give space to these retailers but they are not willing to shift to newer location and for this there is direct confrontation between government and wholesale vegetable vendors for the last two days. As of now, at the time of writing this article the stalemate is continuing and entire progress of development is still not recognized.
The second biggest vegetable market of Puri town of Lord Jagannath is nearer to fag end of town nearer to Puri main hospital, where vegetable vendors in nearby districts come and bring vegetables from Laxmi market and sell there. Unfortunately, when in this second market vegetable vendors open for selling, business persons of Laxmi market come and force them to close their selling.
In fact business people of Laxmi market are from the local people who have been at Puri town for generations.
Whereas small business persons nearer to the vegetable market at Hospital square consist of outsiders. They are afraid of local vegetable market vendors and forced their shop to close and as a result the vegetable prices in Puri town for the last two days are touching sky-rocketing prices which are making the matter worse for many citizens. What is surprising the most is the total stalemate of administration and total mute from executive as for the last two day these local business persons of Laxmi market are forcibly closing all the vegetable shops and there is no one to stop them from taking laws in to their hands.
In the next morning while crossing some local breakfast shops at the dawn of next morning, while doing morning walk heard of small breakfast shops are talking about increasing prices of small breakfast items which are now two rupees per piece to make it now 30 rupees per piece, which is surprising and the way government is acting in these situations is making entire situation worse. Why there is no swift action on behalf of the law enforcing authorities when local vegetable vendors of Laxmi market use force to close down selling of vegetables at Puri Hospital vegetable market.
The government should have anticipated this and should have come to action immediately and should have taken these vegetable vendors into preventive custody before they act fast. What is government? It is tantamount to stopping such malicious elements from spreading viruses all over the society. Countless people eat vegetables in order to maintain a good health.
With stopping of vegetable market for last two days, many shop owners of second biggest vegetable market of Puri town are now selling vegetables in mobile by riding a bicycle and they are now selling cauliflower which was 10 rupees earlier now with 60 to 80 rupees per piece which is highly exaggerating prices and selling vegetables at astronomically high prices can be deemed as offence.
