Koyambedu market may get fresh look

CHENNAI: Koyambedu market has rotted in neglect for more than a decade but an epiphany could be on the way for one of the largest wholesale vegetable markets in Asia.
Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Ltd (TNUIFSL) has prepared a final report with recommendations on how the 295-acre market can be converted into a world-class facility.It will soon submit the study to the Koyambedu Market Management Committee (MMC). The project will be implemented once the government approves the proposal.
Traders and customers have choked in dust and mucked through slush on the pothole-dotted roads of the market since it was built in 1996. The lack of a proper drainage network and a flawed waste disposal system causes garbage and dirt to pile up in mounds, leaving customers and traders nauseated.
The metro rail project has made matters worse, say customers. “The area around the market is dustier these days,” says R Vasanth Raj, who regularly shops for at the market. “When it rains, it quickly floods the market and roads turn slushy and impossible to use.”
This could all change if the report by TNUIFSL is implemented, MMC chief administrative officer P Senthil Kumar says. “TNUIFSL has submitted a draft of a report and we have had discussions on the suggestions made,” he says.
“A final report will be sent to the government to make the market a modern facility that will have quality concrete roads, proper garbage clearance, electric lights and restroom facilities for workers apart from a stormwater drain system,” he said. He also said the facilities are to be refurbished at the cost of 33 crore that will be provided by Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority.
The plans include the purchase of 59 new dustbins. “We have decided to remove damaged dustbins and replace them with bigger ones so the garbage will not spill over to the road,” Kumar says.
There is one hitch, however. The government has yet to appoint market committee members. But the MMC chief and former committee officials are confident that this is only a formality and will be completed soon. “The government will not waste time on the appointments once it approves the plan as the committee members are responsible for the development and maintenance of the market,” said V R Soundarajan, a former executive member of MMC.