The Hindu : Confusion over shifting of market

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jan 04, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Karnataka

Confusion over shifting of market

By Our Staff Correspondent

MYSORE Jan. 3. The confusion over shifting the wholesale market from Santhepet in Mysore to the new yard of the Agricultural Produce Marketing Corporation (APMC) at Bandipalya on the outskirts of the city has seriously affected traders.

With the Government's inexplicable procrastination in providing water, electricity, asphalted roads, and other basic amenities at the APMC yard, and the delay in allotment of sites at the new yard to genuine wholesale merchants of Santhepet pose a hurdle to the translocation process.

Although around two years have elapsed since the Government declared that the wholesale market has been shifted from Santhepet to the APMC yard at Bandipalya, on March 23, 2001, little progress has been made to pave the way for traders to shift their activity to the new location completely. Though several traders have already constructed godowns in the APMC yard by obtaining loans from banks, wholesale trade of commodities is continuing at Santhepet as well.

The confusion has affected the traders, says the President of the Bandipalya APMC Merchants' Protection Committee, Abdul Gaffar. More than 200 traders have constructed godowns in the APMC yard at Bandipalya by raising money through loans. An estimated Rs. 15 crore has been spent on constructing godowns by the traders. Out of this, nearly Rs. 10 crore has been obtained through loans. "We are not only paying interest on the loans but also suffering losses in the business on account of the confusion over the shifting process,'' Mr. Gaffar says.

As the wholesale business is being carried out simultaneously at the APMC yard and at Santhepet, traders are not able to get a good price for the commodities. "The Government should shift the business from Santhepet to the APMC yard lock, stock and barrel,'' he says. The committee has urged the Government to provide water supply, electricity, asphalted roads, and other amenities at the APMC yard.

The Mysore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) has also complained about the lack of basic amenities in the area. "There is no proper water supply in the area. Electricity is supplied to the area for barely five hours a day,'' he says.

The MCCI President, Krishnappa, says the APMC yard at Bandipalya does not have proper underground drainage. Besides, there is need for setting up a nationalised bank, health centre, animal husbandry and veterinary school, bus stand, public toilet, police station, fire station, post office, a stand for goods transport vehicles, and boarding and lodging facilities for travelling traders. "There is need to asphalt the roads in the APMC yard premises and lay a double road from Mysore to Mandakalli to facilitate free movement of vehicles from the city to the yard,'' Mr. Krishnappa says. He expresses surprise over the continuing delay in sanctioning sites to merchants, as land is available, according to him.

He says that 159 acres of land is under the APMC yard at Bandipalya, there is enough space available for the construction of 400 to 500 more shops. The authorities should expedite the process of identifying land suitable for allotment, he adds. Sites have been allotted to only half the total number of merchants at Santhepet.

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