When a project involves a prime property in the city, a lot of interest is likely to be generated. But the Palayam market complex project, even after being one of the hottest proposals, has been in the cold storage for months now. The State Government has now asked the Thiruvananthapuram Development Authority (TRIDA) and the City Corporation to decide on the project’s future in a month’s time.
A meeting called by the Urban Affairs Minister last week had asked INKEL, the agency partnered by the Corporation for the project, to submit detailed proposals to all stakeholders, which they have done. However, TRIDA, who owns a major portion of the land at the proposed project site, is seemingly less interested in the role of INKEL. And is in no mood to hurry with a decision.
‘’INKEL submitted the details of the project to us after the meeting. See, since this involves a prime land and many other aspects have to be taken into consideration, we cannot jump to conclusions. We have been given one month’s time, we will try to look into it by then,’’ said TRIDA Chairman P K Venugopal.
The Corporation is, however, stuck with one of the clauses put forward by INKEL, that of handling the running of the complex and enjoying its income for the next 35 years. ‘’Which means, TRIDA and the Corporation will have to be mere onlookers all these years. That is something we are seriously looking into,’’ said Palayam Rajan, Welfare Standing Committee Chairman of the Corporation.
However, INKEL officials said they have not insisted on any clause, but have only suggested all the possible ways in which the project could be handled as an agency. ‘’We have made it clear that the project could be taken up on a percentage basis, or a BOT basis or Swiss challenge method. But since it involves a prime property, TRIDA might want to ponder a bit. The Government has allowed one month for an answer and we are waiting,’’ an INKEL official said.
According to the TRIDA Chairman, the proposal is new to him and needs a deep study before any concrete steps could be taken.
Amidst all the confusion, the relieved lot are the traders in the market who were afraid of being displaced. As per the project, there would be a modernised market with all facilities and a hotel complex with a different entrance. The rehabilitation block planned has the facility to house the displaced traders, numbering around 400. A design created by an architect based in Kozhikode was selected based on a public poll, one of the first-of-its-kind exercises done for a city project.
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