An indefinite vegetable market strike started in Balurghat on Wednesday following a tussle between wholesale and retail vegetable traders.
During Covid, in order not to have too many people to go to one place, the local administration in association with the Balurghat civic body moved the wholesale vegetable traders from Tahabazar area to Andolon Bridge area. Since then, the wholesale vegetable community conducts business there between 6 am to 9 am and then leaves. The retail vegetable traders claim that they are facing trouble buying vegetables from wholesale vegetable traders who are conducting the trade at Andolon Bridge and, therefore, those wholesalers need to be transferred to Tahbazar immediately.
The wholesale traders claim that it is convenient for them to organise trade at Andolon Bridge instead of Tahabazar.
Both the groups had earlier hinted for an indefinite strike from December 6. The concerned authority of Balurghat civic body had also sent a notice to the wholesale vegetable traders to go back to Tahabazar but the traders didn’t pay any heed to the appeal.
Gopal Saha, a leader of retail Tahabazar Market said: “The wholesale traders should return to their former place fixed by the civic body. We requested them several times but they ignored us. The wholesale traders captured the main road of the city illegally to conduct their business ignoring the inconvenience of the pedestrians. We had filed a written complaint regarding the matter to the local administration but no step has been taken yet.”
Sanjay Kumar Mondal, on behalf of wholesale traders, said: “The place that was fixed by the civic body at Tahabazar is not convenient for the wholesale vegetable business. We earlier appealed to the local administration to shift the place but they are reluctant to solve the matter.” Ashok Mitra, civic body chairman, said: “We discussed the matter between the two conflicting groups and informed the District Magistrate about everything.”