Chennai, Sep 2 (IANS) The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) in Tamil Nadu has proposed enlarging 108 stalls at the modern fish market on Sindhanai Sirpi Singaravelar Salai, commonly known as Loop Road, to address complaints over inadequate selling space.
Under the Rs 48.49-lakh project, each stall will be expanded from 30 square feet to 50 square feet. The work will cover 48 stalls on the southern side of the market and another 60 on its western side.
The civic body has invited bids for the project. The move, however, has failed to satisfy sections of the local fishing community. Fishermen and vendors have demanded that those selling their own catch be permitted to continue operating along the roadside.
They maintain that roadside sales are closely linked to the traditional fishing economy of the coastal settlements and offer direct access to customers.
Vendors argue that merely increasing the size of some stalls will not resolve the market’s central problem.
According to them, stalls located deep inside the complex receive fewer customers because they are less visible and difficult to reach. Buyers, particularly elderly people, often prefer stalls near the road, while fishermen returning from sea find it easier to unload and sell fresh catch close to the shore.
The modern market was built for Rs 14.93 crore and opened with 360 stalls as part of the corporation’s plan to remove fish vending from the carriageway and pavements. It was intended to improve sanitation, provide safer working conditions and ease congestion along the busy coastal stretch.
Despite the relocation drive, several vendors subsequently returned to the roadside or shifted to the market’s parking and walkway areas, citing poor sales, congestion inside the complex, insufficient space and inadequate visibility.
Their return has triggered complaints from motorists and pedestrians, especially as Loop Road now carries additional traffic diverted from other routes.
The continuing dispute has placed the corporation between two competing concerns: protecting the livelihoods of traditional fishing families and keeping a public road free of obstruction.
Local vendors have urged officials to hold consultations before enforcing any further relocation. They want a separate arrangement for fishermen selling catch brought directly from the sea, while resellers could remain inside the market.
A lasting solution, they said, must improve the market without severing their traditional connection to the seafront and passing customers.
–IANS
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