THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Rs 112-crore renovation project of the centuries-old Palayam Connemara Market, which has been long pending, is finally gaining traction with TRIDA (Thiruvananthapuram Development Authority) deciding to hand over the land. According to sources, TRIDA will relinquish the property at Palayam to the Smart City Thiruvananthapuram Ltd (SCTL) soon.
It’s been more than three months since SCTL awarded the tender to a company for executing the revamp. Despite the official launch of the project, SCTL was unable to start work on ground because of the delay in the handing over of the land by TRIDA. A meeting has been scheduled on January 15 to discuss the terms and conditions.
Rehabilitation of around 450 traders at the market and multi-level parking facility are the two projects that would be executed simultaneously, sources said. A senior official of SCTL said that the work on construction of the rehabilitation block and parking facility will commence by the end of January or the beginning February.
“We are expecting TRIDA to hand over the land in the next couple of days. To begin with, we will be focusing on construction of the rehabilitation block. We need to shift around 450 traders for carrying out the reconstruction of the market,” said the SCTL official. TRIDA had demanded twice the amount of fair value of the land from SCTL. According to officials, the terms and conditions would be finalised in the next Smart City board meeting.
The plan is to set up a two-storeyed prefabricated permanent structure in TRIDA-owned land inside the market. SCTL has roped in an agency to clear the dumping yard at Palayam where the rehabilitation block would be set up. “Because of adverse weather, the clearing of the dumping yard is going on at a snail’s pace. So far, we have been able to complete only 40 per cent of the work.
The actual plan was to complete the biomining of legacy waste at the dumpyard in three months. But the lockdown and the pandemic outbreak have hampered timely completion of work. Recently, the work was disrupted due to unseasonal rain. The waste has to be dry to work on it,” said the official. An official of TRIDA said that there is an order from the state government not to wait for the signing of the MoU and hand over the land to SCTL immediately.
What is biomining?
Biomining involves the process of using strong inoculums to extract non-biodegradable waste from heaps of accumulated waste. Approximately, around 2,000-tonne legacy waste has been accumulated at the dumpsite.
Key features of revamped market
Hi-tech fish and meat market
Deep refrigerator for safe storage of fish
Dedicated stalls with a mobile charging dock and water tap for each vendor
Effluent treatment facility
Area to park around 250 cars within the building
Multi-level parking facility which can accommodate over 500 cars
Protection of the heritage wall in front of the market