Mysore/Mysuru: Flower vendors, who suffered losses due to Friday’s heavy downpour in the city, have urged the MCC authorities to make proper arrangements before ordering them to shift Devaraja flower market to J.K. Grounds.

As a crowd-control measure for Varamahalakshmi festival, the MCC had ordered temporary shifting of Devaraja Flower Market to the more spacious J.K. Grounds from July 29 to 31. But the heavy rains that lashed the city on Varamahalakshmi Festival (July 31) day, destroyed over 1,000 kg of flowers totally, causing huge losses to the vendors. 

Although the flower sellers have returned to Devaraja Market, they left behind destroyed and rotten flowers at J.K. Grounds without bothering to clear them, which has led to the pile up of flowers.

N. Manjunath, owner of Gayathri Flower Stall, told ‘Star of Mysore’  that although the temporary shifting of  Devaraja flower market to J.K.Grounds was a good decision in the wake of the rapid spread of COVID-19, the authorities had not bothered to put proper arrangements in place at the new venue.

Maintaining that flowers totally weighing more than a 1,000  kg  were destroyed by Friday’s heavy downpour, he opined that the Dasara Exhibition Ground was a better place for them to do business in case of temporary shifting. 

Opining that Puja material sellers too be allowed to do business along with flower vendors at the shifted place as this measure will help in restricting movement of people from one place to another, Manjunath said that the authorities must ensure proper facilities at new locations                             before asking them to shift there during the times of crisis such as this one.