Hyderabad: The Kukatpally Model Rythu bazaar that was to be ready in six months will take another six months to be ready. The alternative land to which the bazaar has been shifted is beside a sewage pool and below a flyover, which is hardly the place for a bazaar selling edible items, besides making it difficult for farmers who sell their produce here, to access.
About 400 farmers used to sell their produce in the old Kukatpally Rythu Bazaar; now there are about 150. The location beneath the Hitech city flyover has caused others to shift to other areas across the city as they have suffered a loss in customers and income.
Renovation of the Rythu bazaar began in August 2018. The farmers’ signatures were taken signalling their acceptance and promising that it would be ready in six months.
“I used to sell five boxes of tomatoes in a day in the old site, now it has come down to two boxes here, as not many customers come here. This place is almost deserted after six in the evening, as there are a lot of mosquitoes, which is further damaging our business,” said tomato farmer Ch Mallareddy, who has come from Vikarabad and has been staying here for the last two days hoping to sell all the produce he has brought with him.
The area allotted for the bazaar is open on both sides and the farmers have to rush to the middle whenever it rains. There are leaks everywhere, and an onion load was badly damaged. When rain water mixes with the vegetable waste, it creates a stink which makes things even more miserable for the sellers, said another farmer.
“The government is spending only on big things like industry, but they are ignoring small things. The condition of this vegetable market is horrible, but as I am a regular customer I still come to this place. Though this is a temporary set up, proper hygiene should be maintained at least, keeping the increasing viral fevers in mind,” said a customer K. Venkat, who had come to the Rythu bazaar with his six-year-old daughter.
When this paper contacted the concerned officials, they said that a change of construction plan was the reason for the delay. “We had not thought of constructing a cellar, but it was decided to add one and for this, rocky land has to be dug up which alone took a couple of months. Also, due to elections and the rains, the construction got delayed,” was the official’s excuse.
The new model Rythu bazaar is being constructed with a cellar, ground and first floor, along with canteen and cold storage facilities, and can accommodate 400 farmers. It is being built at a cost of `10 crore and is expected to be finished by March 2020.
The Rythu bazaars, financed by the state government, are meant for small-scale farmers with small holdings, who can sell their produce directly to customers without paying commission to exploitative middlemen.
