Vendors divided over reconstruction of Central Market in Kozhikode

Vendors at the Central Market in Kozhikode are divided over the proposal to rebuild the market even as the Kerala High Court has directed the Kozhikode Corporation secretary and the Fisheries Director to maintain status quo until further hearing on a petition filed by Mohammed Jaseel on behalf of the Central Market Protection Committee.

The committee had approached the court, alleging that the proposed reconstruction would adversely affect over 1,500 vendors at the market, and that reconstructing the building, which is only 19 years old, was an effort to appease the real estate mafia. A united protest committee of vendors staged a collectorate march on Monday, which was inaugurated by former MLA P.V. Anvar. The vendors are against the demolition of the market building and their forceful eviction.

On the other hand, the Central Market Coordination Committee has come up in support of the project, pointing out that the Corporation had agreed to most of the terms put forth by the committee. The committee, backed by the Kerala Vyapari Vyavasayi Ekopana Samithi and prominent trade unions, alleged that a few vendors who had approached the High Court against the project were spreading lies. “There has been no change in the detailed project report other than that more shop rooms have been included to accommodate every vendor. It is our responsibility to ensure that the funds allocated by the Central government for the reconstruction of the facility do not lapse,” C.C. Mansoor Ahamed, convener of the Committee, told the media here on Tuesday.

The committee had organised a protest at the market on Monday as the High Court order came out, demanding an end to alleged attempts to sabotage the project.

Meanwhile, Fisheries and Allied Labourers’ Federation has demanded that the authorities clear the air between vendors and the public. A meeting of the federation on Monday demanded that the authorities issue identity cards to all vendors and labourers in the market and ensure that all of them are accommodated under the new plan.

The Indian National Vyapari Vyavasayi Congress, in a meeting on Monday, also demanded that the Corporation consider the needs of the vendors before going ahead with the project.

The reconstruction of the market will be carried out at a cost of ₹55 crore by the Fisheries department based on a plan and detailed project report prepared under the aegis of the Kozhikode Corporation. The tender for the works has been floated and the bids will be finalised by August 7. Meanwhile, the next hearing of the case at the High Court has been scheduled for August 1.