After Raj Thackeray attack,Puneites shun pani puri,bhel

At Sambhaji Park and outside Sarasbaug—two of the city’s hotspots for the earthly fast foods — which are thronged by multitudes on weekends,pani puris and bhelwallahs do roaring business as citizens tired after going in circles in the gardens take their pick available for Rs 10 and Rs 20 a plate. Both on Saturday and Sunday,pani puri and bhelwallahs sat twiddling their thumbs as customers were hard to come by.

Sixty-year-old Waman Kondapure of Vyas Bhel Puri reflected the downcast mood in Sambhaji Park on J M Road. “I landed up as usual today at 10 pm. But not one customer has turned up. On Saturday too,only a handful of them visited us,” said Kondapure,who has been doing the business since 1972. “This is the first time,my business has been affected so badly,” he said. In the neighbouring stall,Tanaji Patil of Anand Pani Puri,echoed the sentiment,”Nobody is even coming near our stall. I have not sold even one plate of pani puri today. Yesterday,at least some people turned up. But our business has been affected very badly,” he said.

Outside Sarasbaug in Swargate,Gorak Rode of Preeti Bhel Puri,said,”Bahut kum log aha rahe hey kalse….(Very few people are turning up since yesterday).” Jeetendra Raut,another vendor said,”People are preferring anything other than pani puri.” Twenty two-year-old Sagar Shetye,a customer who had come from Warje,said he will never eat pani puri henceforth in his life even as gorged on a plateful of bhel.

Be it at the chaotic Yerawada chowk,near the ever-busy Shaniwarwada,at Bhel Chowk in Pradhikaran or the PMT chowk at Bhosari,desi fast food is finding few takers after a vendor was caught urinating in pani puri and the MNS launching a fusillade against vendors in Pune on Friday.

However,the vendors in the city explain that since water availability was not a problem,they don’t compromise with hygiene factor. “For four decades,no body ever complained that my bhel or pani puri was not worth eating. We have problem as PMC water is easily available in Sambhaji Park,” Kondapure said. “I guess we will have to suffer for another 15 days for one man’s folly,” said Patil.

The PMC has launched a drive against illegal vendors in the city,the PCMC has decided to get into the act from Monday. “We have seized and destroyed over 20 ton of samples from various vendors especially from those which operate in the evening hours. Some samples have been sent to the government laboratory for examination,” said PMC health chief Dr R R Pardeshi.

He said they had raided a pani puri manufacturing unit in Bibwewadi and found it to be in most unhygienic condition. “We have seized various materials and have made a panchanama of the unit,” said Dr Pardeshi.

Officials said the unit apparently supplies pani puris across the city which was a cause for alarm. PCMC health chief Dr Nagkumar Kunachgi said that health inspectors will swoop down on all bhelpuri,vada pao,pani puri and other vendors across the industrial town from Monday.