Concerns over Mattancherry losing its commercial charm
The Hindu
Narrow roads and “high” loading and unloading charges cited as reasons
With much of the commercial activity in the famed Bazaar Road and adjacent streets in Mattancherry shifting to mainland Ernakulam, the fear is rife that the historic trading hub from where spices and other commodities were exported to far-off lands would go the Alappuzha way, thanks to extremely narrow roads and what is being termed as high loading and unloading charges.
The narrow and bottlenecked roads of the market hampered the movement of lorries, while headload workers charge very high rates, said Mattancherry-based RTI activist Govindan Namboodiri K.
“The disruption in ferry service from the mainland to the region during the past five years further affected the prospects of the market, since innumerable people from Ernakulam banked on the ferry (with fare as low as ₹3) to reach the wholesale trading hub to purchase commodities at economical rates. The shallow Mattancherry boat jetty must be urgently dredged so that ferry services resume,” he added.
Actor and Hindupur MLA Nandamuri Balakrishna relaunched the Anna Canteen and NTR Arogya Ratham here on Monday amidst much fanfare. The twin occasions marked Mr. Balakrishna’s 64th birthday celebrations. Speaking to the media, Mr. Balakrishna said that the people of Andhra Pradesh had given a historic verdict to the NDA, and “I shall tirelessly work to fulfil all the promises made to them.”
A delegation of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) led by its Polit Bureau member Varla Ramaiah has lodged a complaint with Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Superintendent of Police (SP) U. Ravi Prakash, alleging that former Minister Botcha Satyanarayana, his personal assistant and some officers had taken bribes from teachers for transferring them to the places of their choice.