Meghalaya | Stalls at Polo Market complex already allotted: officials

SHILLONG:

The Shillong Municipal Board (SMB) has already made an allotment of the stalls to all the 297 beneficiaries of the newly constructed market complex at Polo in Shillong.

"We have made the allotment as per the list which is available with the SMB. Majority of the beneficiaries are those shop owners who are paying tax to the municipal board," a senior government official informed here on Tuesday.

According to him, the beneficiaries are still furnishing their respective shops.

"It will depend on the people who were allotted with the stalls to decide when they are going to start opening their respective shops. Our job was to allot the stalls once the project is formally inaugurated," a senior government official said.

When asked if the municipal board is planning to convert the terrace of the shopping mall into a vegetable market, he said that there is no such decision so far.

ALSO READ: ULFA-I's Drishti Rajkhowa & group escape after firefight with Meghalaya police

It may be mentioned that former Urban Affairs Minister, Hamletson Dohling had inaugurated the project on August 13, 2020. On that day, deeds of agreement and shop keys were also handed out to a few of the shopkeepers.

Sanctioned in the year 2010-11 at an estimated cost of Rs. 21.41 crore, the Market Complex has been built over an area of 3000 SqM and houses a total of 297 stalls and a food court.

The project was funded by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India, and implemented by the National Buildings Construction Corporation Ltd.

The Polo Market complex is a state-of-the-art building designed to rehabilitate roadside vendors and hawkers of Polo Bazaar.

The stalls include vegetable shops, fish stalls, pork stalls, beef stalls, chicken stalls, tea stalls, grocery, pan/kwai (betelnut) shop, mutton stalls etc.