Vellore Corporation Demolishes Encroachments at Netaji Market to Ease Access

The Vellore Corporation removed extensions of shops and temporary structures from the British-era Netaji Wholesale Market complex on Thursday after residents complained that encroachments were making it difficult to walk through the facility.

The market is located opposite the 16th-century Vellore Fort complex and occupies 1.5 acres. Corporation officials said it has 736 shops, including 282 retail outlets.

“With the festival season, the demolition drive was aimed at providing more leg space for consumers to walk easily inside the market complex,” S. Venkatesan, Assistant Engineer (AE), Vellore Corporation, told The Hindu.

Encroachments narrowed walking space

Officials said most of the illegal structures occupied at least three feet of the narrow stretches inside the market complex. Each street in the market measures 16 ft wide on an average.

The reduced walking space made it difficult for many consumers, especially women, to walk safely through the market. It also resulted in congestion, particularly during evening hours.

The Corporation said the structures removed during the drive included illegal temporary structures, holdings and extended portions of existing shops. The civic body had issued prior notices to traders, asking them to demolish the illegal structures on their own before officials removed them on Thursday.

Special teams were formed by the Town Planning section of the civic body to carry out the demolition. The teams were formed after A. Catherine Saranya, Corporation Commissioner, received numerous complaints from residents about the increasing number of encroachments.

R. Prema, a resident, said, “Such demolition drives should be done regularly to prevent traders from extending their shops into the walking area in the market.”

A market with a long history

The wholesale market was built in 1868, two years after the Vellore Municipality was established in 1866. Local historians said it got its name in the 1960s after office bearers of the Vellore Town Vegetable Merchants Association decided to name it after freedom fighter Subhas Chandra Bose.

The market serves residents within Corporation limits, which cover 60 wards and have a population of over 10 lakh persons. It also receives essential items from neighbouring States.

Every day, on an average, 80-100 lorries from Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra come to the market to unload those items. The regular movement of lorries, traders and consumers adds to the importance of keeping the market’s narrow internal streets accessible.

Modernisation constrained by fort rules

Corporation officials said attempts to rebuild the market with modern facilities had failed after the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) declined to give a NOC.

The market is located within the 100-metre prohibited area of the fort complex, which is a protected monument. Officials said the restriction applies under the provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act (AMASAR), 2010.

Source: The Hindu