City gears up to check unauthorised street sales

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With Onam round the corner, it’s that time of the year when temporary shops sprout up all around the city. The City Corporation, to be on the road early this time, has entrusted the Revenue officials to identify such shops that come up only for festive season, to zero in those which have been working on a temporary basis for months and to keep an eye on possible places where shops might come up.According to Corporation officials, on every inch of space available on the main roads, right from Palayam to East Fort and near the premises of Thampanoor bus station and railway station,  temporary shops mushroom with just a sheet of asbestos or plain textile cloth drawn over as cover.It was one such temporary shop that came up near the Theerthapada Mandapam during one festive season that caught fire the other day, allegedly the fallout of a murky row between the land owner and the sales group."After the incident, we directed the Revenue officials to take a list of such temporary shops and sheds in the city which function as sales centres. Since it is Onam, there will be many such shops mushrooming; we have initiated steps to stop them,’’ said Deputy Mayor G Happykumar.According to him, the direction is not just restricted to shops around the Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple, but across the main roads in the city.However, the Corporation has found itself hand-tied when it comes to big wigs tracking the same route for festive business. It was a temporary sales shed that was functioning in Overbridge some years back that has now been shifted to Statue and which works as a full-fledged shop these days."They move the court and gain favourable verdicts. In some cases, we have to show some flexibility. Like the rows of book shops on Nandavanam road. We have not given them permission, but we can’t throw them out too. We are thinking about some ways to stop such sales,’’ said Mayor K Chandrika.The Health Standing Committee has also formed two squads to intensify the drive against small hotels which do not maintain cleanliness."With the festive season near, small hotels usually have a brisk business now. But they do not care for cleanliness, which is why we have formed two new squads who will look into it. Also, the drive against tobacco products near schools has been intensified,’’ said Pushpalatha, Health Standing Committee Chairperson.