Six roadside vendors that sell vegetables at the Meigunyah Junction along Nadi Back Road are concerned they will not make enough money to support their families if they are removed from their current location and shifted to the Nadi or Namaka markets.
Roadside vendor Narend Chand says if they move they will not be able to sell their produce on Fridays and Saturdays which are the days they make the most money.
He says the allocated space for casual vendors at the Nadi and Namaka markets are reserved for farmers from villages on Fridays and Saturdays.
Chand adds the two markets are also far from where they are located.
He says this situation is not about them avoiding competition because even if they move to the Nadi or Namaka markets, people would still find it inconvenient to travel that far.
Chand says their current location at the Meigunyah junction is convenient for people that live near the area.
He says at least at their current location they can earn around $300 in a week compared to the $150 they make at the Nadi or Namaka markets.
Another roadside vendor Sonika Devi says she lost her job at Nadi Airport in March last year and has since been helping her mother at the roadside stall.
She says her mother has been selling vegetables there for 15 years.
Devi says at the Nadi or Namaka markets, they will only be selling two to three days a week.
The Minister for Local Government Premila Kumar is urging roadside vendors to register for a stall with the municipal council as space is available for them.
Kumar says most municipal council markets are empty and they still have people selling on the roadside.
She says the Namaka Vendors Association has written to her saying if people are selling on the roadside, they will also move to the roadside.
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