KMC seeks building plan to reconstruct Park Circus mkt
Times of India | 7 January 2026
Kolkata: The KMC market department approached the civic body's building department to draw a design for the ground and first floors of the Park Circus market, waiting to be reconstructed.
The market was declared unsafe after a concrete chunk from a parapet crashed in July 2022, injuring a shopper. But the KMC, which found the market ‘unsafe', has since faced challenges razing and rebuilding the structure as traders have refused to temporarily relocate to Park Circus Maidan. Though the MMiC, overseeing the market department, Amiruddin Bobby, claimed most traders had agreed to shift out, a section refused the KMC's reconstruction proposal, saying they were not aware of the entire reconstruction plan and would not shift during the work.
Civic authorities, this time, planning to take traders into confidence, have asked the building department to draw a foolproof plan for accommodating all traders at the proposed new market. "We don't want to hide anything from traders. So we have asked building department engineers to draw a detailed plan for the first two floors that will prove the existing traders will be compensated for, according to their current status," said Bobby.
A market department official said after a round of discussions with traders, KMC would start shifting preparations. "We met civic officials to find a solution to the stalemate. Though KMC bosses want us to shift to Park Circus Maidan, we will have a talk after the market department sends us a specific order," said a Park Circus Market Byabsayi Samiti member.
According to the trader, post-Covid, business dropped by over 75%. "It remains to be seen if the traders are ready to shift as the reconstruction won't be complete over before 2028," said the trader.
The proposal for reconstruction of the market was taken at a Mayor-in-Council meet in 2023. A decade-and-a-half ago, Reliance Retail proposed a joint development but the 500-odd traders and vendors objected. The redevelopment proposal was revived after the 2022 accident. Traders admit the market is risky but are unwilling to shift, fearing business loss.