Chalai market cries for upkeep as ideas do rounds to refurbish it

TNIE lensman Albin Mathew shares a few snapshots of the crumbling structures and congested roads of the Chalai Market

It is a busy scene in the mornings at Chalai, which also means the narrow road stretch gets clogged as loading and unloading brisks up. Albin Mathew

Crying for upkeep: Several heritage buildings strewn across Chalai market display time-inflicted wear and tear.Albin Mathew

Heritage spots are time pockets, a space where the past remains somewhere lurking even as the present enters.

Chalai Market in Thiruvananthapuram is one such spot, where each morning, the past wakes the market up to prepare it for a bright present.  
The activity is nowhere a hustle; on the contrary, it’s soothing as one finds fresh agri produce careening out of cartloads. Yet, there is the visible stagnation that the 600-year-old space has reached.

Thiruvananthapuram natives still resort to the market for their basic needs — its vegetable market is still the favourite haunt of those who want to buy wholesale and fresh. “The grocery shops here are really old. They bring produce from across the border, and the variety of heirloom grains and millets available here is just amazing and quite free from adulteration,” says Natarajan, a yoga master, who buys his monthly grocery from Chalai.

Even before sunrise, the flower shops open, to allow supply for the morning rituals at temples and shrines. Albin Mathew

A fruit merchant displaying his wares by the side of the market, further shrinking the space for traffic on the narrow road through the Chalai market. Albin Mathew

And for this reason, there is a need to develop this “crumbling” market space, say the vendors. “The road is so congested due to encroachment, and it’s tough for our customers to manoeuvre their vehicles through. Parking space is practically nil,” says T Manian, a casual worker who helps with transport. “Mornings are the busiest time, and then it’s literally a no-entry zone for locals because the arterial road is very narrow,” he adds.

 
Chalai has been in the development list of the Tourism department as well as the Smart City project, but plans for it have not gone far, says Shaji Krishnan, Thiruvananthapuram convenor of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). 

Chalai is still the chosen hub for wholesale buying of vegetables and groceries.Albin Mathew

A storage unit in the market area, crying for better facilities.Albin Mathew

Another dingy storage space in Chalai.Albin Mathew

“Conservation has to go hand in hand with development in a space like Chalai. Heritage is not just about the tangible; it is more about the place being part of Thiruvananthapuram’s psyche, with its history entrenched in the Kanthalloor Sala. The development plans in future will have to understand this and take counsel from all stakeholders, including conservation architects and experts,” says Shaji.

A conservation committee, including an all-party delegation as well as experts, was constituted two weeks ago as per the directive of the state government, says Mayor V V Rajesh, who claims Chalai Market is one of the prime heritage spots in the ambit of the Corporation’s plans.

“We are now finishing the works that are already ongoing. A parking lot is also coming up behind the Putharikandam Maidanam,” says the Mayor.
However, there is a lot more to be done, he adds. “The old buildings have to be renovated, the drains restructured, and facilities added. All these will slowly, with the counsel from the committee,” he says.

As plans and projects still circle Chalai, the heritage market moves in a subtle balance between the past and the present.