Varanasi meat shop relocation about health, not closure: UP minister

UP minister Sanjay Nishad defended Varanasi's decision to move meat and fish shops outside city limits for public health and hygiene. The Municipal Corporation approved the plan, relocating shops to five designated areas on the city's outskirts.

Minister Defends Relocation for Health and Safety

Uttar Pradesh minister Sanjay Nishad on Sunday defended the Varanasi Municipal Corporation's decision to shift meat and fish shops outside the city limits, saying the move was aimed at better organisation and public health safety rather than shutting businesses down.

Speaking to ANI, Nishad said the government's responsibility was to establish a proper system while ensuring hygiene and safety standards. "These shops are not being shut down but rather organised. It is better to ensure health safety. Establishing a proper system is the government's responsibility. I thank the government for taking this step," Nishad said.

Varanasi Municipal Corporation's Plan

The remarks came after the Varanasi Municipal Corporation decided to relocate meat and fish shops outside the city limits as part of efforts to keep the city organised and clean.

According to the Municipal Corporation, under this initiative, all meat and fish shops will be relocated outside the city limits. The roadmap for this move was finalised and the proposal approved during a House meeting, presided over by Mayor Ashok Kumar Tiwari. Municipal Commissioner Himanshu Nagpal informed the House that five locations have been selected for the first phase of the plan. All these sites are situated near the city's outer boundaries to ensure no inconvenience to the general public. In the coming days, meat and fish shops currently operating within the city will be shifted to the Ramnagar, Sujabad, Ganeshpur, Awaleshpur, and Shivpur areas.

BJP Leader Seeks Ban on Weapons in Muharram Processions

Meanwhile, BJP leader Nazia Elahi Khan said she had written to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath seeking a ban on the use of weapons during Muharram processions, citing law and order concerns.

"I have written a letter to CM Yogi Adityanath, and I have appealed to him that the way Surya has lost his life in Ghaziabad, Khora and on the occasion of Bakrid, a Hindu was sacrificed... The weapons, swords and chains that are used in Muharram during the road processions should be banned completely," Khan told reporters. She argued that no weapons should be carried in public processions and alleged criminal activities carried out in the name of Muharram should be stopped.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)