Vendors stage 1-day strike

The vegetable and fruit vendors at Choithram Mandi, the new vegetable market, staged a one-day strike in favour of potato/onion merchants strike.

The merchants went on an indefinite strike on Thursday against the Mandi Administration's decision of ending commission agencies.

The agencies have been fetching commission to the merchants for the last seven decades. The vendors also appealed farmers to stop sending their produce to the mandis.

They kept their operations closed as a mark of protest. Due to the strike the supply of vegetables to Nandlalpura sub-mandi and Rajkumar Mill Mandi got affected.

Some farmers, however, supplied to Nandlalpura sub-mandi and other small Mandis. Meanwhile, on Saturday some farmers supported the Mandi Administration's decision to end the 'Aadhat Pratha'.

So far, the merchants used to take commission from the farmers for selling the their produce in the market under the 'Aadhat Pratha', but now the Mandi Administration will charge the same from merchants instead of the farmers.

The merchants went on strike to protest this decision. The markets saw 30 to 50 percent higher vegetable prices due to the strike.