I remember the time right after the movie Traffic Signal had released. Everyone of us resolved to never buy fruits sold by hawkers on traffic signals, however fresh and enticing they looked. The movie quite vividly showcased the stark reality of how these hawkers would use dirty drain water, or sometimes even their own saliva (gross!) to clean and polish these fruits, to make them look appealing. The horror!
Although when it comes to the usual subziwallahs at the local market, we’re all somewhat more trusting of their products. But then, should we?
Maybe what you’re about to see next will answer this question, but not in a way you’ll particularly like.
Twitter handle @MumbaiLiveNews shared a video of hawkers in Vakola area of Santacruz, Mumbai, storing their groceries in a rather unusual place. Or shall I say disgusting?
Be warned, this is rather revolting.
#Hawkers use open gutters for storing and hiding vegetables.
Here’s a video of a group of hawkers in #Vakola taking out stored food items from gutters. #Santacruz #Mumbai @mnsadhikrut @ShivSena @sanjaynirupam @INCMaharashtra @SandeepDadarMNS pic.twitter.com/tk5OX72YU3— Mumbai Live (@MumbaiLiveNews) February 9, 2018
I’d give you some time to digest what you’ve just seen but this is more likely to cause you severe indigestion.
So does this mean you shouldn’t even trust your friendly neighbourhood subziwale bhaiyya now? Of all the places, THAT gutter was the only place they could find?
The Twitter account, in its tweet, has tagged political parties like MNS, Shiv Sena and Congress, as well as other local leaders to get to the bottom of this dirty hole. Meanwhile others seem to be expressing their shock in their own ways.
1. Outrageous enough that it caught funnyman José’s eye too. And he’s in shock!
— José Covaco (@HoeZaay) February 9, 2018
2. Not cool, man!
— Atom (@GAURAVMISHRA09) February 9, 2018
3. Shitty indeed!
Bullshit!! This is really shity!!
— Snehashish Sen (@imsnehashishsen) February 9, 2018
We don’t need a rocket scientist to comprehend how unhygienic this practice is and how outraged people are going to be when they find out. The video does not seem to show the reactions of most people in that busy street, but surely the residents who shop from there daily would have raised concerns after coming across these hawkers.
Let’s hope necessary investigations are made and action is taken to remedy this situation.