BHUBANESWAR: Tension erupted at Ashoka Market near Station Square after the authorities reached the area to launch a demolition drive there. The vendors vehemently opposed the demolition for which the officials were forced to halt the drive.The Central Eviction Monitoring Committee (CEMC), comprising officials of Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) and Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), went to carry out the demolition of the four-storey building in Ashoka Market, but they faced stiff opposition by the local vendors over there.
We went to the site with two excavators to start the demolition drive, but could not proceed due to the protests by the locals. However, we still managed to demolish some part of the market complex, said a BDA official.Next time we will take the assistance of the city police while conducting the demolition drive of the building, he added.
The shopkeepers blocked the road and burnt tyres alleging that the authorities had snapped water and electricity supply to the market complex without giving any prior notice to them.
The vehicular movement came to a stand still during the protests by the local vendors which lasted for several minutes.
The BDA had issued a public notice asking the shop-owners to vacate their stalls in the Ashoka market after Orissa High Court gave it the go-ahead. The shop-owners had moved the High Court to challenge their eviction, but the court had directed the BDA to make space for them in other markets.
In October, BDA had arranged rehabilitation of the shopkeepers at eight different locations in the city. Under the Smart City project, the authorities have planned to redevelop the market complex at the heart of the Capital as a multi-modal hub.
