THOOTHUKUDI: The public and traders in Udangudi have strongly opposed the reconstruction of the Muhammad Abubucker Maraikayar bus stand, even as the town panchayat officials served eviction notices to the shopkeepers after the Madras High Court lifted the stay on the tender notification of the project recently.
The bus stand has 17 commercial shops rented by the town panchayat, said sources. It was revamped at a cost of `30 lakh in 2018. Subsequently, the previous government hurriedly floated a tender on July 1, 2025 to demolish the bus stand and construct a new one at an estimated cost of `2.79 crore at the same place.
The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court granted an interim stay for the project on October 14, 2025, and vacated it on July 27, 2026.
Following the order, the civic body has served notices again to the shopkeepers to vacate the premises within 15 days, without making any alternate arrangements for the operations of the buses, shopkeepers and sanitary complex for the passengers.
The president of the Thoothukudi south district vanigar sangangalin peravai, A Ravi, said that the previous government did not pay heed to traders’ requests to find alternate arrangements for the bus stand and ensure livelihood for the shopkeepers.
The civic body is pursuing the project only because of the stability certificate taken in favour of demolishing it. How can a bus stand revamped five years ago be weak? He questioned.
Tamil Nadu Vanigar Sangangalin Peravai state joint secretary V Gunaselan said that the bus stand was revamped in 2018 to ensure the stability of the building for another 20 years. However, the DMK government floated another tender in a short span.
He pointed out that the old town panchayat building, a 10-lakh-litre overhead water tank in the Udangudi weekly market, and Ayya Kovil bus stop, and other infrastructure constructed three decades ago are dilapidated and about to collapse anytime. The town panchayat is not bothered about its safety, but keen on reconstructing the bus stand, only for corruption, he alleged.
The traders said that demolishing the bus stand which is in a good condition, and reconstructing it again will cause financial loss to the government exchequer.
The government may shift the bus stand to the outskirts of the town as the existing one cannot accommodate all the buses. There is heavy traffic in the peak hours due to the narrow roads in the area, the public said.
Over 160 government buses, and 60 omni buses are operated from the bus stand. The facility with eight bus bays stands on 50 cents in the bazaar area which is connected by narrow roads. Hundreds of people, especially from the 70 villages surrounding Udangudi, use the bus stand every day.