Despite business being affected, street vendors still support order

The business of low scale vendors like vegetable and fruit sellers, coconut water retailers, street food joints, fishmongers and others are badly hit by plastic ban in Maharashtra but they have welcomed the initiative as 80% of waste are mixture of polythene bags which choke the city’s drains.

The vendors have resorted to use either cotton bags or brown-paper bag or newspaper as an alternative to plastic bags.

One of the vendors Bapu Shelke (50), selling fruits at Sassoon Dock in Colaba, said his business is down by nearly 10 percent as the customers demand polybag to carry fruits. Shelke is purchasing newspaper in Rs15/kg from scrap dealers to wrap fruits.

“Our business has gone down by nearly 10 percent as the customers are not willing to take fruits wrapped in newspaper. Though we have kept cotton bags for Rs. 5/pc. We have no option but to wrap the fruits in paper,” said Shelke.

One of the worst affected vendors was coconut water retailer at Colaba Market Shahadat Shaikh whose business is down by 25 percent as now he cannot pour the coconut water into polybag after the plastic ban.

“The ban has directly affecting our livelihood, as the customers are going back. Earlier, few customers used to come and purchase coconut water in bulk as it was convenient for them too to carry the (coconut) water in poly-bag. But now they cannot carry coconuts in their bag,” said Shaikh. “The customers are bringing bottles with them to carry coconut water. But it is good that plastic is banned in Maharashtra,” he said.

Meanwhile, a vegetable seller Babloo Kesarwani complained that the customers generally coming on motorcycles demand poly-bags to carry vegetables. “Our business has suffered by 50 per cent, as motorcycle-borne customers cannot carry vegetables wrapped in newspapers,” said Kesarwani, who sells vegetables near fire brigade in Sassoon Dock.

Mastan, a juice seller at Colaba market, says he has to keep water in a bucket to clean the used glasses but the people observing fast refuse to drink juice in a glass as they think it is not ‘properly washed’. “The disposable glasses were better. The customers observing fast dont want to drink juice in glass, as it is washed in bucket. My business is down by 50 percent. Also, after drinking juice few customers throw glass in dustbin mistaking it to be disposable one,” he said.

Meanwhile, customers at chicken and mutton shops in Colaba market are bringing their own dabbas to carry wet food products. “Though we are wrapping the chicken and mutton in newspaper to give it to customers but few customers are bringing their own dabbas with them,” said a shopkeeper at Haji Muhammad Ali, Mutton and Chicken supplier at Colaba market.