TIRUNELVELI: The Tirunelveli Corporation has come under fire for allegedly allowing an individual to operate a shop inside Junction Bus Stand, which was built at a cost of Rs 85.56 crore but has not been opened yet due to lack of environmental clearance (EC). Environmentalists and activists have raised serious concerns over the unauthorised commercial activity.
Speaking to TNIE, environmentalist S P Muthuraman said, “It is illegal to permit commercial operations in a building that lacks approvals. Due to the lack of EC, the majority of the bus stand, including shops on all four floors, has not been opened. Without EC, the corporation cannot float tenders or legally allocate shops. If a shop is currently running, who is collecting the rent?” RTI activist Ferdin Rayan said TANGEDCO had supplied electricity to the building despite the absence of a completion certificate, which is a violation of norms.
The delay in securing EC has been traced back to the previous AIADMK regime. When contacted, Assistant Commissioner of Thachanallur zone, Johnson, confirmed that an individual named Kumar had been allowed to run a shop at the site. However, when asked whether the allotment was made through an official tender process, he said he would verify the details.
Corporation Commissioner Dr N O Sukhaputra said he had taken note of the matter, while Mayor G Ramakrishnan said that he was not aware about the issue. “I am in Chennai at the moment. I will visit the bus stand once I return,” he said.