Shabby Kadri Market to be Replaced with Rs 15 Cr State-of-the-Art Market Complex
Mangaluru: Here is some good news for citizens who have been patronizing the shabby Kadri Market, which is nearly 40 years old, to buy their Meats, Vegetables, and other groceries, within two years from now will be shopping for their daily necessities in a brand new state-of-the-art Market Complex in the same location. The present MCC Kadri Market is set to get a facelift as the civic body has proposed to reconstruct it at an estimated cost of Rs 15 crore. With the State government giving the technical approval for the proposed project, and also the administrative approval from the State Cabinet, by next month the new Market Complex will start and would take nearly 18 months to complete.
It is learnt that the civic body would invest Rs 4 crore from its enterprise fund and raise Rs 6 crore through a loan from a nationalised bank. The remaining Rs 5-6 crore will be taken as a loan from the Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation (KUIDFC). The Market Complex would have a basement, lower and upper ground floors and three storeys. There would be provisions for selling meat and vegetables separately. In addition, the complex would have shops. The civic body had mooted the proposal nearly two years ago by writing to the KUIDFC to prepare the feasibility report on the project on May 30, 2016. Finally, the Urban Development Department approved the project in its meeting on September 26, 2017. The project estimate and plan has also been approved by the PWD department.
Presently the MCC has started constructing temporary market cells located opposite to the present Market, where all the shops existing in the present market will be shifted to these temporary stalls, once the work of the new Market Complex begins. These temporary stalls cost around Rs 10 lakh and should be completed within next month. Presently there are 36 stalls, and the shop owners and even the general public have been facing lots of inconveniences due to lack of basic facilities and the market being dilapidated. The state-of-the-art market complex will be constructed on a 70 cents, which includes the present 25 cents and the 45 cents land which lies adjacent to the present market site will also be used.
Speaking to Team Mangalorean MCC Mayor Bhasker K said, “Once the work starts for the new complex, all the vendors will shift to the temporary stalls, and when the complex is completed, they will again move back into the new stalls. Then the temporary stalls will be demolished and may be used a parking areas for vehicles. All the existing vendors will get the priority, and there will be no allocation for new vendors. The foundation for the complex was laid on March 26, and once the work starts it would take about 18 months to complete. This will be a nice Market Complex once it is put into use”.
Norbert Crasta, who owns five meat shops in the existing Kadri market speaking to Team Mangalorean said, “This market earlier existed on the space where the present Mescom building is located near Kanara Club. All the present 36 owners in the market have cooperated with MCC and other district administration officials without creating objections or hassles, and we are happy that by next year or so we will have a brand new market complex. Although the temporary stalls may not be very convenient for us to do business, we will have to manage with it.”