Shopping complex under Smart Cities Mission in Madurai nearing completion

Corporation engineer says it is expected to be opened in two months

The work on shopping complex, adjacent to Periyar bus stand, under the Central government’s Smart Cities Mission, is nearing completion.

Madurai Corporation City Engineer A. Lakshmanan said the total cost of the project stood at ₹174.56 crore, out of which ₹50 crore was allocated for the bus stand which was inaugurated in December 2021.

“Internal technical work is currently under process. Eighty percent of the work is complete and we aim to open it for use in two months,” he added.

Facilities

The three-storey complex also comprises two underground levels – basement 1 for shops and basement 2 for two-wheeler parking.

According to Assistant Engineer V. Arumugam, the basement 2 is interconnected with the underground parking facility at Periyar bus stand. “It can accommodate 4,865 two-wheelers at a time, out of which 2,000 vehicles can be parked at the second basement of the complex. While the parking at the first basement at the bus stand can house 371 cars,” he said.

As many as 475 shopping spaces have been planned at the complex which is more than the number of previous shops (446) at the Bharathi shopping complex, which was torn down as part of the renovation.