Chandigarh Admn expedites shifting of Sector 26 Grain Market
Dushyant Singh Pundir
Chandigarh, February 27
The UT Administration has expedited the process to shift the Grain, Fruit and Vegetable Market from Sector 26 to Sector 39.
Rs 3.70-crore reserve price for SCO site
- Freehold SCO site of 120 sq yd each to have reserve price of Rs 3.70 crore
- Auction to be held as per the Chandigarh Estate Rules, 2007
- First preference to licensees of Sector 26 market
- Of nearly 170 licensees, 30 are dealing in grain and the rest in fruit and vegetables
- Reserve price calculated on the basis of collector rate of Sec 38 SCOs
Land acquired in 1990
A piece of land measuring 75 acres was acquired in 1990 and the site allotted for the second market in Sector 39 in 2002
What caused the delay
An official said the shifting was delayed as the UT Administration was waiting for permission from the Ministry of Home Affairs to adopt the process for the allotment of space at the new site.
Assn to oppose auction
Brij Mohan, president, Sabzi Mandi Arhtiya Association, Sector 26, said they would oppose the auction of the sites under the Estate Rules, 2007. He said the administration should allot the sites according to the Punjab State Agricultural Marketing Board (Sale and Transfer of Plots) Rules, 1961.
The UT Administration has decided to hold the auction of 92 shop-cum-office (SCO) sites at the new market in Sector 39 in the last week of March. It will be held on a freehold basis at the reserve price of nearly Rs 3.70 crore per SCO site of the size of 120 square yards each.
An official of the Chandigarh State Agricultural Marketing Board said the auction would be held as per the terms and conditions of the Chandigarh Estate Rules, 2007. First preference will be given to the existing licensees of the Sector 26 market, said the official, adding that of nearly 170 licensees there, 30 are dealing in grain and the rest in fruit and vegetables. The reserve price has been calculated on the basis of the collector rate of SCOs in Sector 38.
He said the Horticulture Department had been directed to remove five trees from the area.
The UT Administrator, Banwarilal Purohit, in December last year, gave approval to the auction of 92 SCOs on a freehold basis at the new market under the Chandigarh Estate Rules. The issue of shifting the present market from Sector 26 to Sector 39 has been pending for a long time. A piece of land measuring 75 acres was acquired in 1990 and the site allotted for the second market in Sector 39 in 2002.
After the allotment of shops in the new market, the Sector 26 market will be denotified in a phased manner. After completing the auction process, the market is expected to be shifted by April, said the official.
An official said the shifting was delayed as the UT Administration was waiting for permission from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to adopt the process for the allotment of space at the new site.
The administration had requested the MHA vide a letter dated May 5, 2021, followed by reminders to grant permission for adopting the Punjab State Agricultural Marketing Board (Sale and Transfer of Plots) Rules, 1961, for disposing of the sites at Sector 39. In the absence of the MHA nod, the UT decided to allot the new sites under the Estate Rules.
Brij Mohan, president, Sabzi Mandi Arhtiya Association, Sector 26, said they would oppose the auction of the sites under the Estate Rules, 2007. He said the administration should allot the sites according to the Punjab State Agricultural Marketing Board (Sale and Transfer of Plots) Rules, 1961.
Brij Mohan said the shifting process was started in 2007. The sites should be allotted at reserve prices to be calculated on the basis of the cost of the land and the amount spent on creating the infrastructure, instead of the current market value of the land.
In August 2015, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had directed the UT Administration to make the Sector 39 market functional. In its affidavit, the administration had assured the market would be made operational by March 31, 2016, but nothing had been done all this while.
