Anna Market on Mettupalayam Road in the city. , photo credit: s. Shiva Saravanan
According to the commissioner, the corporation will soon start the work of renovating three main markets of the city – MGR Market, Anna Market and Tomato Market in Sundarapuram.
The corporation council meeting held on May 14 passed a resolution stating that existing stalls in the three markets would be renovated for ₹807 lakh. Out of this, Rs 403.5 lakh will be received from the central government fund and the rest from the general fund of the civic body.
According to the resolution, MGR market is to be renovated for Rs 3.15 crore, Anna market for Rs 4.19 crore and Tomato market for Rs 73 lakh. The statement said the bidding had started on April 26.
Welcoming the move, a motorist in the area said that Mettupalayam Road and its inner lanes were prone to heavy traffic due to MGR and Anna markets and garbage is also not disposed of properly, causing more inconvenience to passers-by .
SV Chandran, president of the Anna Market Traders Association, refuted this, saying that the traffic was high due to an eye hospital in the area, which has inadequate parking facilities. “Anna Market has been functioning for more than 35 years, but recently such issues have come to the fore. The two Aavin booths cause traffic jams with long queues.
He said, “The association plans to petition the collector on Monday regarding shifting the stall to another area, as the corporation has proposed a change of location, which may reduce the number of customers, which will lead to more vendors.” Livelihoods can be affected.”
CN Palanisamy, president of the Coimbatore District Wholesale Vegetable Traders Association, alleged that he had not received a formal notification regarding the renewal.
“At present, there are 112 shops operating in MGR market, which has been operational since 1994. The market, which is about nine acres, sees around 2,000 visitors daily. Presently 60 of the total shops have roofs. Providing a wall and roof for all these outlets can be difficult, but will be helpful. We had requested for better road access facilities, drinking water and toilets,” he said.
Commissioner said that tensile roofing structure will be prepared for all the shops in the markets.
“Cement road will be made inside and drain culverts will be reconstructed. Facilities like drinking water, toilets and street lights will also be provided. The tender was floated and the bidding started on 26 April. Soon, the work is going to start, he said.