Varanasi: Scores of meat, fish and chicken traders, along with leaders of political parties and civil society organisations, staged a demonstration outside the Varanasi Municipal Corporation (VMC) office on Tuesday, demanding the withdrawal of its recent decision to relocate meat, fish and chicken shops 10–15 km outside the city limits. The protesters later submitted a memorandum to the municipal commissioner.Leaders and activists of the Samajwadi Party, Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Left parties, social organisations, student groups and traders from various markets took out a joint march before staging a protest at the VMC office.Addressing the gathering, Dinesh Chauhan of the Chaukaghat fish market said the decision was a direct attack on the livelihoods of thousands of small traders, workers and their families. Representatives of the Bengali community said shifting fish shops outside the city would inconvenience millions of consumers.Awadhesh Patel of the Shivpur market alleged that small traders were being targeted in the name of cleanliness, while no such restrictions were being imposed on malls, hotels, restaurants or online food delivery platforms.Congress city president Raghvendra Chaubey said Varanasi is a city of diverse cultures and culinary traditions, and restrictions on food choices and livelihoods were against the spirit of the Constitution.SP corporator Haroon demanded a comprehensive survey of shopkeepers and sought the provision of licences, registration certificates, permanent shops, cold storage facilities, water, electricity and scientific waste management systems. A The memorandum demanded the immediate withdrawal of the relocation decision, regularisation of existing shops, provision of basic civic amenities, enforcement of hygiene standards and protection of the constitutional rights to livelihood and trade. The programme was conducted by Nandlal Master and Sanjeev Singh.
