Foul smelling vegetables and fruits rot all over the place; stagnant muddy water mocks at passersby, customers and visitors at Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) market in Vashi, the day when the Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched his ‘Swachh Bharat’ clean-up campaign.  

While most government agencies and civic bodies joined in, or at least posed for photo-ops, the state-run Agricultural wholesale market was messy as ever on the day of the launch of the cleanliness drive, and even the next day.

Sellers at the market told scribes that it was business as usual on October 2, the launch day of the campaign and no cleanliness drive was carried out. Loads of waste vegetables and fruits were seen lying in the premises. Media Eye visit disclosed the same sad story the next day on October 3.

Awfully smelling rotting vegetables and fruits were scattered at the entry of all commercial blocks, and standing water posed great health hazard as these remain a breeding ground for mosquitoes. This is a common sight at the market; the problem only worsens during rains, when people have to wade through murky water that fills up the narrow paths of the commercial block.

Media Eye has earlier reported on the unclean ambience within the premises of the APMC market, stressing on the requirement for the state-run body to enforce hygiene, especially since the produce for almost the entire city goes out to retailers from this very market.