Rlys suspends move to collect licence fee at Ponmalai mkt

Trichy railway division has decided to postpone its decision to collect licence and parking fee from traders at Ponmalai weekly at least for a month in the wake of protests. The decision came after peace talks were held between the division officials and traders here on Monday in the presence of Trichy MP, P Kumar.

Southern Railway’s move to collect vendor fee ranging from Rs 5 to Rs 1,000 for occupying the ground and daily parking fee up to Rs 10 from visitors was aimed at tapping the revenue generating potential of the weekly market. However, terming the move as unilateral, Ponmalai weekly market traders and other vendors in the railway colony had been protesting for the past three days.

As the iconic market shut shop on Sunday, the day it usually comes alive, a peace talk in the presence of Trichy MP P Kumar was convened at the DRM office on Monday. “Railways management has agreed to suspend the proposal to collect vendor fee from traders for a month. We have reiterated our demand to revise the prescribed fee as it was cited as exorbitant by the Ponmalai vendors,” member of parliament P Kumar told TOI after attending the meeting. The AIADMK MP added that a sum of Rs 10 lakh would be sanctioned from his constituency development fund to establish basic amenities in the weekly market.

Reacting to the development, traders said that they have been pressuring the railways management to collect vendor fee only after providing basic amenities in the 92-year-old Ponmalai Sunday market and nearby Kambigate market. “Railways can collect a reasonable fee but only if basic amenities are provided to the Ponmalai traders,” M Ashokan, a trader at the market said. The market, which has around 500 stalls besides mobile vendors, is estimated to be doing business for not less than Rs 20 lakh a week. “We will consider the representation made on behalf of the Ponmalai market traders but we are firm about collecting licence fee from Ponmalai traders,” divisional railway manager U K Reddy said.

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