The Times of India   14.08.2012

‘Costly’ night market stalls find few takers, civic body to slash rent

The Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) has cancelled the auctioning
process for stalls at the night market after food brands showed no
interest in buying `costly’ stalls. The civic body is now planning to
reduce the deposit amount and annual rent for stalls.

The VMC had issued an advertisement on July 25 inviting
applications from local, national and international food chains to
participate in the auction of 12 big and 30 small stalls at the market.
However, till August 3, the last date of submitting applications, only
three city-based brands applied for small stalls and paid Rs 4 lakh each
as deposit amount.

The civic body had fixed Rs 8 lakh as deposit and an equal amount
as offset value, or the minimum annual rent, for each of the 12 big
stalls. The figures were Rs 4 lakh each for the smaller stalls. However,
the hospitality industry has found these rates too high.

“Since we have received only three applications, the auctioning
process stands cancelled. We have received complaints that the deposit
amount and offset value of the stalls is too high. We will reduce these
amounts and re-initiate the auctioning process,” Suresh Tuver, officer
in charge of the process, told The Indian Express.

A proposal for reducing deposit and offset value will require
approval of the Standing Committee and, subsequently, the General Board
of VMC. This can take significant time, Tuver added.

According to the present plan, of the12 big stalls, four are to
be allocated to international food franchises, four to national food
brands and the remaining to local brands. The 30 small stalls have been
kept for local, traditional food and beverages.

“Firms are demanding that they be allowed to do business during
day-time also. However, no demand has been made to allow sale of
non-vegetarian food,” Tuver said.

The night market, a first-of-its-kind in the state, is to remain
open from 5 pm to 4 am and VMC has prohibited preparing or selling
non-veg articles on the complex near the VUDA circle.

The market is ready for use for the last three months. Civic
officials were confident of winding up the auction process by August 15
and throw open the food and beverage zone to public by the month-end.
But this seems unlikely now. “No specific time frame can be given for
the auctioning process,” Tuver said.