Coimbatore: To pave the way for the construction of the Ukkadam flyover, over 70 fruit shops from the Perur Bypass Road were relocated to a new market near the sewage treatment plant (STP) at Ukkadam. While wholesale shopkeepers are quite confident about fruit sales, retail shop owners said it would take at least a year to regain the original business.
Citing that the market is about half a kilometre from the main road, a retail shop owner said on the condition of anonymity that there is absolutely no public transportation to the market, apart from the absence of street lights.
“How will customers come here if there is no public transport facility,” he asked, adding that the old market was right on the main road.
But the situation was similar when the old market was established, recalls M M Ali, secretary of the Fruit and Vegetable Sellers’ Welfare Association; there were no proper bus facilities and it was not a busy area a few decades ago, he said.
“As soon as the market is completely set up, the region would be developed,” he said. The wholesale shops would be not be affected due to the relocation, while the retail shops might have to bear the impact for a few months.
Fruits are available in the market at the lowest price, A Mohammed Salim, another vendor, said. The fruits cost almost half what they cost in supermarkets.
The entire stock of fruits is usually sold during weekends. Hence, the retailers will have to purchase goods in such a way that they could sell their entire stock during weekends, said Salim.
As there is a huge demand for fruits at cheap rates, the business will not become dull, said Faizal, joint secretary of the association, who also owners a wholesale shop. They have been demanding the that government relocate the STP, he added.
Since the STP is just a few metres away, the entire place stinks and people are reluctant to come, the retailers said, citing that the movement of people is very less in the area.