JOIN USRaitha Santhe to moo-room
Last year, taking into cognisance the problems faced by roadside vegetable vendors of Raitha Santhe on M G road, the Karnataka Exhibition Authority (KEA) and Mysore City Corporation (MCC) had decided to construct ‘Yeddyurappa Raitha Santhe’ at the cost of ` five crore on four acres of vacant land adjacent to the earlier one. In the first phase, the authorities concerned constructed 800 sheds made out of zinc sheets to be distributed to vegetable vendors.
Arrangements have also been made for the construction of toilet rooms, drinking water and other facilities.
In the midst of this, few people moved the Court against government authorities questioning the construction of the sheds in the disputed land and managed to bring in a stay.
From last few years, more than 800 vegetable vendors are carrying out their business in this area under scorching heat on the disputed land on M G Road since many years.
Earlier, the vegetable vendors had been evicted by the district administration as they were causing inconvenience to the movement of vehicles when they were selling their produce by the roadside near Lansdowne Building on Sayyaji Rao road, a few years back.
These vegetable vendors are none but poor marginal farmers hailing from surrounding villages of Rammanahalli, Chikkahalli and other villages on the outskirts of Mysore.
Majority of the vegetable vendors are poor Dalits and others belonging to backward castes.
Their long pending dreams of getting permanent shelter to do their business on M G Road will perhaps continue to remain a distant dream.
Cattle shed
As no arrangements were made by the concerned authorities for protection of these sheds, the sheds meant for vegetable vendors have turned into cattle byre. Miscreants have been consistently removing the zinc sheets which served as the roof of these sheds.
Meanwhile, speaking to Deccan Herald, KEA Chairman B P Manjunath who had evinced much interest in the construction of Yeddyurapppa Raitha Santhe claims that vacant disputed land of four acres where the vegetable vendors doing business at present on M G road belongs to KEA.
The erstwhile Wadiyars of Mysore had donated about 80 acres to KEA including the disputed land.
He said that his predecessors were able to construct the compound wall up to the end of M G road but were unable to protect the land which was under dispute on the other side of MG Road.
The negligence of government authorities had made it easy for private players to misuse the government property on M G road.
However, the KEA had taken steps to clear the stay and prepare a list of vegetable vendors for the distribution of sheds. With one stay order obtained by a person is awaits decision at the court, with the same order obtained by three others having been vacated already; it’s a matter of time before problems are sorted for this place.