| 6 yrs on, SDA fails Sangarmaal businessmen: Kashmir Inc | | | Early Times Report
srinagar, May 14: Accusing the Srinagar Development Authority of duping the businessmen who procured space in the much-hyped Sangarmal here, the Kashmir Inc on Saturday appealed Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and Dy CM Dr Nirmal Singh, who is also chairperson SDA to come to their rescue.
Addressing a joint press conference, the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries and the Sangarmal Traders Federation said six years on since the inauguration of Sangarmaal city center, the SDA continues to deceive them. The traders said they were sold an incomplete project as not even 40% of the promises made to them by the SDA have been fulfilled.
The aggrieved traders said at the time of inviting bids for investment in the Sangarmaal, the SDA vide a special brochure had promised that the mall would include state-of-the-art facilities including multiplex, five star hotel, amusement park, convocation hall and other facilities. "Given the never before attractions, we didn't mind to beg, borrow and steal, to procure space in this upcoming mall, hoping that we would have a secure business future," the shopkeepers said adding the brochure had pictures of dreams sold to them.
However there came a twist in the promises. "When the project was underway, all of a sudden on June 10, 2010, it was inaugurated, incomplete. Leave apart promises of state-of-the-art facilities, even Bijli and Paani was not available at the mall," the traders president Manzoor Ahmed Sheikh said.
"After the enforced inauguration, when we reached to Sangarmaal, the next day, the door was closed and we were asked to wait till basic amenities like water and electricity would be ready," they said adding it took SDA over a year to provide basic amenities.
The KCCI Vice President Gowhar Ahmed traders said the SDA acted in gross violation to how bonafidde builders elsewhere operate. "Builders take construction based premium where payments are made as per the work progress," the he said.
"However, what happened in case of the Sangarmaal, these traders were made to make full payments ahead of getting the space," he added.
He said given the persistent failure on the part of SDA, which affected business prospects at Sangarmaal, there were no buyers for the remaining space at the mall. Subsequently in 2012, after getting a nod from the board of directors, the SDA made another offer to the aggrieved traders.
"We were asked to procure remaining space so that commercial activities would pick up. But unlike the previous deal when we made hundred percent payment, this time as a relief, we were asked to pay only 50% while the remaining amount was to be paid after four years, which is 2016," the traders explained.
The aggrieved said, as per the commitment, when they recently approached the SDA to make payments, they were asked to pay interest for four years than talk about the basic amount.
"There was no such clause in the deal. Why would we make investment where we had to pay nothing for four years but interest would be mounting? It was simple that we would have taken bank loans instead," the traders pleaded adding SDA was making a fool of the commitments. "The footfall is zero. We have no sales," traders said adding "no one wants to visit this half baked mall."
"Kindly compensate our business losses as SDA ruined us through breach of trust," the traders said appealing Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and Dr Nirmal Singh to look into the matter. |
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