Southern States - Andhra Pradesh-Hyderabad   

Mir Alam Mandi cries for attention

By T. Lalith Singh

HYDERABAD Oct. 3. Mud-spattered, unhygienic with rotten vegetables strewn all over and push- carts fighting for space. Hit by apathy, Mir Alam Mandi, the oldest and once vibrant vegetable and pulses market of the city, seems to be losing its sheen.

In the absence of efforts to improve the infrastructure such as internal roads, cleanliness and streamlining of daily operations, the market has become a hub of harrowing, yet inevitable shopping experience for residents of the old city.

Despite a major part of the wholesale business shifting to new markets that came up at Madannapet, L.B. Nagar and Falaknuma, the `mandi' continues to be a major shopping spot for vegetables and pulses in these parts of the old city. While shoppers from far and near flock the market in large number, no efforts have been made to improve the conditions here.

With an annual turnover of around Rs. 3.50 crores, the market offers all vegetables, with potatoes, tomatoes, green chilly, cauliflower and lemon dominating the sales. According to the arrival register of the Agriculture Market Committee, 1,275 quintals of potato, 1,280 quintals of tomato, 619 quintals of green chilly, 606 quintals of cauliflower and 1,000 quintals of lemon was unloaded for sale during the month of August.

Vendors say they pay the fixed fee regularly to the Market Committee, but complain that no plans have ever been made to improve sanitation, setting up proper stalls, providing storage facilities and paving internal roads. "We pay one per cent of our transactions, but do not find the amount used to better the infrastructure here. The premises are not even cleaned properly," complains a vendor.

According to the Market Committee Secretary, Rajeshwar Rao, the sanitation contract has been given to the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH) and the premises are swept and the refuse removed on alternate days. For this, the MCH gets paid Rs. 10,000 every month, shared by the Mir Alam Mandi Welfare Association (Rs.6,000) and the Market Committee (Rs. 4,000).

"Given the high amount of garbage generated every day, alternate day sweeping will not help," says Yakub, a shopkeeper. Each morning, vendors download their stocks, sort them out and throw away rotten vegetables on the premises resulting in huge piles of stinking refuse accumulating all over. "Bins have not been set up here. Where should we dump the waste," questions another vendor.

(Readers are welcome to write about civic problems in their areas to the City Editor, The Hindu, Begumpet, Hyderabad-16 or email to hydlife@thehindu.co.in)

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