Mayor S. Soundappan has said that shop keepers in the corporation-owned commercial complex in Old Bus Stand have approached the court seeking withdrawal of the recently hiked rent just to cause revenue loss to the civil body.
During the council meeting held here on Thursday, DMK councillor G. Sarala (ward 42) said that the corporation should not have hiked the rent that caused hardship to the shopkeepers.
The Mayor said that traders had submitted petition to the corporation demanding revision in rent.
“When we are in the process of discussing the issue, traders approached the court”, he added and said that their only aim is to cause revenue loss to the civic body.
The Mayor said that since the issue is now in the court, shop keepers refuse to pay the revised rent.
A councillor said that there are 56 shops in the New Bus Stand and the rent is Rs. 80 per sq.ft. whereas the market rate is Rs. 350 per sq.ft.
“The shops are not run by persons to whom the contract is allotted and instead let the shops to be run by others and charge more”, the councillor said.
Ammapet Zone chairman V. Jayaprakash wanted stray dog menace to be controlled and roads to be re-laid in the zone. He also said that though population in the zone had increased in recent years, conservancy workers were reduced causing sanitation issues.
Deputy Mayor M. Natesan said that drainage issues in the city will be resolved by implementing the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and wanted all the non-functional street lights to be replaced.
Councillor M. Balu (ward 3) wanted the pits dug for underground sewer systems to be closed properly so that people can use the road until it is re-laid.
V. Paneerselvam MP, MLAs G. Venkadachalam and A.P. Sakthivel, councillors, executive engineers participated.
