It has been five years since it was announced that the iconic handicraft shopping centre Cauvery Emporium on M. G. Road would be shifted to a new building on the same road. The officials of the Karnataka State Handicrafts Development Corporation Limited (KSHDCL) now say that the building might be ready in the next two and a half months.
When the project was initially announced in 2019, the four-story building was supposed to be completed in eight months. The construction work for the project was first taken up by Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Limited (KRIDL). The officials of KSHDCL said that it was then given away to Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) as the former delayed the construction work without explanation.
In 2022, the officials said the work would be completed in six to eight months, but the building remains under construction. Roopakala. M, the Chairperson of KSHDCL and Congress MLA from KGF said that while she did not want to talk about why the project has been delayed, she said the work was happening in full swing after she took charge.
“The work has been going on consistently since February after I chaired a meeting with all the stakeholders, including BMTC officials and asked them to stick to a strict timeline. While the civil work is now 90% completed, interior work is happening on two floors. They said that they need two and a half more months to finish it. We also have KAS officers in our Board of Directors who are visiting the construction site every day to monitor the progress,” she said.
The annual rent for the building in which the Emporium is currently situated is over ₹3 crore. “Moving from the rented building to our own building will help us develop Cauvery Emporium into a flagship centre for all of Karnataka’s art and craft work. That is our main objective,” Ms. Roopkala said.
KSHDCL wants to move its offices from the current building to the new building in a month. However, the officials said all operations and the store will see a more gradual shift in four to five months to create awareness among customers about the new building.
