Dasari Srinivasa Rao Vijayawada

Wholesaleflower traders and workers at the Rajiv Gandhi Wholesale Flower Market in Vijayawada staged a large-scale protest on Wednesday against the iron girders erected by railway authorities at the market entrance, alleging that the barricades had severely disrupted the movement of traders, customers and vehicles.

The agitated traders expressed anguish over what they termed an unfair action by railway officials, questioning why their livelihoods should be affected on the basis of alleged false reports.

They asserted that they had not paid even a single rupee as a bribe to anyone and had been carrying on their businesses at the location for several decades to earn their livelihood.

Addressing the media, representatives of traders’ associations and affected vendors appealed to the authorities to give them sufficient time to shift to the proposed new flower market. They said the government had already allotted land on GS Raju Road in Gandhi Nagar for constructing a modern wholesale flower market and that clear orders had also been issued from the Chief Minister’s Office.

Construction work on the new facility was progressing at a brisk pace, they said, adding that traders were ready to vacate the present premises voluntarily once the new market was completed and shops were handed over to them.

The traders warned that forcibly preventing business activities before the completion of the alternative facility would affect more than 5,000 people, including traders, farmers and Hamalis who depend on the market.

They also alleged that several people had sustained serious injuries after falling near the iron girders erected by railway authorities. They demanded that the authorities take action against those responsible for publishing false reports instead of restricting access to the market and creating fear among traders.