Bazaar

BAZAAR (Persian word), designation in Eastern countries for a market, closed or open, where constant trade in all sorts of goods is conducted. Unlike markets (see), a bazaar usually refers to an open place where trade is not conducted daily, but periodically (once or twice a week) on certain so-called bazaar days, or is timed for various holidays, mainly church ones. In pre-revolutionary times, bazaar squares in cities, according to the City Regulations of 1892, were the property of the city, while in villages they belonged to private individuals or departments, or constituted the public property of peasants. The width of such a square in a settlement, according to Art. 424 of the Construction Regulations, Vol. XII, had to be at least 10 sazhens (approximately 21 meters). Usually, being located in villages and small towns, B. replace the markets of large cities and serve not only the population of the place where they are located, but also surrounding villages. The objects of trade in bazaars are mainly agricultural food products (vegetables, fruits, dairy products, eggs, meat, etc.), as well as necessary items of peasant household and agricultural utensils, and sometimes poultry and livestock. Trade in food products in bazaars is carried out less often from booths, more often from stalls, tables, and carts. The sanitary significance of a bazaar is determined by the following moments: the bazaar square in small towns, villages, and rural settlements is usually located in the center; there is always a large arrival and departure of carts, driving of livestock, and crowds of people gather. For this reason, the bazaar square is easily contaminated and is, especially during epidemics, dangerous in terms of the possibility of spreading infections. Bazaars often become a favorite gathering place for stray dogs; this must be kept in mind in the fight against rabies. Due to these conditions, as well as the fact that B. are a place for trading food products, bazaar squares must satisfy a number of sanitary requirements. Allocation of a site for a bazaar square should be done in agreement with sanitary supervision. The bazaar square should not interfere with the normal life of the given place (city, town, settlement) and should be located not in its center, as is the case in most cases at present, but on the periphery; it should not contaminate the soil of the city or settlement and its water sources. A site for a bazaar square should be allocated far from dumps, as well as from establishments and enterprises whose work is a source of air and soil contamination (rag warehouses, tanneries, etc.). Squares for a bazaar in cities, and if possible, in settlements, must necessarily be paved and have drains for water, must be supplied with water (drilling or other closed wells, and where there is a water supply, water distribution booths), as well as public toilets; the latter should be located far from places where food products are traded. For garbage and manure, special covered containers (boxes) must be available; both should be taken to dumps immediately after the closure of B. Cleaning of B. should be done before the start of trade (early in the morning) and after it; the area should be watered during cleaning to avoid dust. When calculating the required area, one can proceed from the following norms: 36 sq. m per cart or 50 sq. m per courtyard (in settlements); the minimum size of the area is determined at 5,500 sq. m without the roadway of the street and sidewalks. Driveways and passages should be free and easily accessible: driveways should have a width of at least 8-10 m, passages at least 3 m. The order of trade and sanitary supervision of B. is usually regulated by local mandatory regulations. In this regard, there are rules of the People's Commissariats of Health and Internal Affairs of the RSFSR of May 8, 1922 (Bulletin of the NKZdrav, 1922, No. 9), providing for the basic sanitary requirements. The sale of food products in B. should not be carried out together with other items (rags, clothing, equipment, etc.). Food products should be sold in special rows separately for each product (dairy, vegetable, meat row, etc.). Stalls, baskets, and other devices for goods should be protected from flies and contamination and installed on tables or stands with a height of at least 3/4 m. A special place should be allocated for peasant trade (from carts). Trade in livestock should be carried out completely in isolation. In view of the fact that peasants often bring slaughtered livestock, veterinary inspection posts should be set up on bazaar days for inspection of all brought-in meat. These should be served by a veterinary doctor and only in extreme cases (in rural conditions) can be served by a veterinary feldsher). For veterinary inspection posts at the bazaar, a special room should be allocated, equipped accordingly (trichinoscopy).