COIMBATORE: The Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) came under severe scrutiny for poor planning and baseless decisions made without consulting the public and other stakeholders involved, at a grievance redressal meeting held on Friday and Saturday.
A few days ago, the civic body had decided to abandon the Vellalore Integrated Bus Terminus (IBT) project and convert buildings constructed for the project to a wholesale fruit and vegetable market and a truck lay-by along with booking offices, restrooms, and other facilities, which would be shifted from Ukkadam.
Vellalore residents, wholesale traders and truck booking agents have all strongly condemned the civic body’s move. They opposed the civic body’s announcement, citing hygiene concerns due to the presence of Vellalore dump yard in the vicinity. In view of this, the civic body organised a two-day grievance redressal meeting with wholesale fruits and vegetable traders, market associations on Friday and the Ukkadam Lorrypettai lorry booking agents association on Saturday to take suggestions and address doubts. The Ukkadam Lorrypettai association members’ on Saturday, called out the civic body for taking a decision without consulting them first.
Speaking to TNIE, Coimbatore City Lorry Booking Agents Association Secretary and Coimbatore Stall Owners Association (Ukkadam Lorrypettai) President SI Kaja Hussain said, “There are over 120 approved shops here in Ukkadam, which include lorry booking offices and others. Only 40 trucks can be parked here in the current Lorrypettai and many truck drivers have moved to private parking facilities on Perur Bypass Road. While we have only 4.5 acres here, the civic body offered us over 10 acres of land at Vellalore. However, we rejected it owing to the presence of Vellalore dump yard, which could affect drivers’ health. Only the truck lay-by can be shifted from here, as no shop-owner here will be ready to shift.”
Kaja Hussain also added that they had urged the CCMC to provide small land parcels in all five zones of the city with good facilities instead of a large land parcel at Vellalore.