Alphonsa ground to be cleared off smart carts

The carts were procured for the 900 vendors who have been selected to set them up at Marina beach.

“We are moving the carts out from the ground so that local youths can use the playground,” said a Corporation official, admitting that the carts reduced the size of the play area. The 333 carts would now be shifted to a vacant area inside Kailasapuram burial ground in Mylapore, and a tender was floated for this at an estimated expense of Rs 10 lakh.

The remaining carts would be stored at another spot that has been identified in Teynampet zone.

The smart vending carts, which were procured to be deployed on Marina as part of the beach beautification programme, are now lying exposed to extreme weather conditions. During the November rains, they were lying in knee deep water that damaged them.

Based on a High Court order directing the civic body to regulate vending on the beach, the Chennai Corporation had procured 900 smart vending carts at a cost of more than Rs 17 crore. The civic body allocated the carts to 900 vendors, who have been selected through a court-monitored process.

However, a dispute between bidders who competed for the supply of the carts stalled the process of handing over the carts. In a case filed by one of the bidders, the Supreme Court had ordered the civic body to maintain status quo, forcing the Corporation to store the carts at Alphonsa ground.