Chennai: Roadside eateries on Marina Loop Road are taking things up a notch: while they already encroach into the carriageway, now they also have built crude rooftop areas advertised as ‘sea-view’ restaurants.The stretch, meant for pedestrians and beach-goers, has been taken over by makeshift eateries operating out of steel containers and tee structures with thatched or metal roofs. Many of the operators are not traditional fishermen but commercial players who have expanded their establishments onto public pavements.In the past week, eateries in at least four locations along the road have built rooftop extensions. These structures are dangerous as they are built upon a single-brick house structure. They clearly do not have building approval from the Greater Chennai Corporation.Moreover, these shops do not have licences from Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). Despite the absence of mandatory clearances, they continue to operate in the open, drawing large crowds in the evenings and on weekends. Every shop rakes in around 50,000 a day during the week and more than 1 lakh a day on weekends. They pay no taxes.These shops mostly sell seafood, including prawns, fish and squid, which they are known to purchase at the Chintadripet market. Against all evidence, GCC executive engineer for Teynampet zone D Ramamurthy claimed there had only been two shops on the stretch for a year and that more shops had cropped up only this week. “We will ensure they are taken down,” he said. Deputy mayor Mahesh Kumar said the shops would be issued notices shortly. “We will also collect commercial tax from them for the business they have done for so long,” he said.The civic body, which pushed for Blue Flag certification of parts of Marina beach, did not initiate sustained eviction drives on the Loop Road stretch. The pavements are taken over by 100-plus eateries, many of which stretch into the carriageway. This forces many beach-goers to walk on the pavements. Officials said these eateries are not removed due to political pressure. While food safety commissioner R Lalvena was not available for comment, Mylapore MLA D Velu said they plan to build a food court near the Pattinapakkam ground. “All these shops will be shifted to the new food court. We might propose the project this financial year, but only the next govt will take it up,” he said.
