JOIN USVending zones close to reality
If all goes according to the plans, you can shop for vegetables to fruits, food to garments at a dedicated slot near your house. The Mysore City Corporation (MCC) is close to launching vending zones, starting from the core area to total 31 different locations in the city.
Replying to a related query raised by the corporators at the meeting on budget for 2012-13 on Friday, MCC commissioner K S Raykar said it has been decided to create vending zones, after repeated surveys undertaken in the past one year.
One such zone will come up on Kukkarahalli lake road, while another on Valmiki road near Paduvarahalli catering to 300 vendors in each location respectively.
Explaining about the nitty-gritty of the plans, the commissioner said the zonal assistant commissioners surveyed the number of road vendors thrice in the year.
Though there were differences in numbers, it was eventually calculated at 4,000. Instead of evicting the vendors in a hasty manner, it was decided to go slow on their rehabilitation.
Starting from the core area of the city, the work will be taken up in a phased manner, the commissioner assured.
He also told the corporators that apart from creating a dedicated zone for buying articles, the intended programme will also help address issues related to footpath encroachments and also traffic hurdles. Police Commissioner K L Sudheer has also evinced interest.
Most importantly, during the survey it also came to the notice that the vendors are being harassed in various manner.
Besides, traders opting for day loan, where in they have to return the amount to the money lender after closing the day’s business.
The respective issue will also be addressed with the formation of cooperative societies by the city corporation, to lend money to such vendors at the rate of interest of Rs five per Rs 1,000.
The commissioner was happy to inform that the government has allocated Rs two crore seed money to take up the project.
With this the State Government is looking at Mysore with huge expectations to replicate the success model of vending zones in other parts of the State.
Parking at malls
Former mayor Satish (Sandesh Swamy) who has had the first hand experience of the hiccup faced by the residents when public park their vehicles according to their whims and fancy, wanted to know whether the malls could charge for underground parking.
Satish brought it to the notice of the council that, the visitors to the Mall of Mysore situated near his house had been parking on the roads opposite to the mall, thus adding to the civic woes.
The visitors park the vehicles outside just to avoid paying exorbitant parking fee. He wanted to know whether there are any provisions in the Town Planning Act to levy parking cess on visitors.
In reply to this, an officer from the town planning department at the city corporation said, nominal fee can be collected for operation and maintenance of the facility.
This irked the former mayor who wanted to know the answer in conjunction with law from the commissioner. The commissioner sought some time to reply to the same.
Mayor Pushpalatha Chikkanna, deputy mayor M J Ravikumar and others were present.