Margao: Seven years after the Quepem Municipal Council (QMC) demolished the old market building to make way for a new complex, the structure is finally ready, but the shopkeepers who were displaced by the demolition are yet to be handed the keys to their new premises.Official sources said that the Quepem market complex has already been commissioned, but that allotment of shops, stalls and offices to the original lessees is still contingent on a set of statutory formalities that remain in process, which includes execution of fresh agreements and compliance with the Goa Municipalities (Transfer of Immovable Property) Rules, 1970.The delay traces back to the project’s troubled history. QMC had begun demolishing the old, dilapidated market building on Nov 28, 2017, but the work was halted midway after a councillor raised objections. The remaining structure was razed only in May 2018, following due procedure. Construction of the new Rs 10 crore complex funded through the Goa State Urban Development Agency (GSUDA), finally got underway in March 2019, after GSUDA had changed the tender three times The contract was awarded to a firm, with an 18-month completion deadline of Sep 17, 2020.That deadline came and went nearly six years ago. The complex, which comprises a basement for parking, a ground floor for fish and vegetable vendors, two floors of offices and shops, and a fourth-floor hall with a capacity of 500, has now finally been completed and commissioned, but with vendors still waiting on the sidelines.On the procedure to be followed for allotment of shops to original lessees, officials said that “each case would be individually scrutinised with reference to the original lease or allotment, the relevant council resolution, rent and arrears position, applicable rent, etc. The remaining shops/stalls/offices shall be dealt in accordance with the applicable statutory provisions and Rules”.
