‘Illegal’ parking fees at Urban Square invites ire

CHENNAI: Any well-developed urban infrastructure must entail a dedicated spot for leisure, community engagement, and wellness – the primary reason why an ‘Urban Square’ near Kathipara gained huge popularity since its inception in December 2021. However, several visitors have raised allegations of mismanagement of public space and charging of illegal parking fees.

In June, V Govindarajan, a resident of Tambaram, had visited the Uptown, Kathipara Urban Square multiple times. During each of his visits, Govindarajan alleges to have paid parking fees of Rs 10 with no payment receipt in exchange.

“While visiting the Uptown, I had paid Rs 10 to park my two-wheeler in exchange for a token. But, when questioned, there was no clarity on whether the public is mandated to pay parking charges,” said Govindarajan.

Govindarajan, a social activist and president of United Federation of Residents Welfare Associations, questioned whether the contractor is allowed to charge parking fees from the public and if CMRL has awarded any specific tender for parking.

To unearth more details on the same, Govindarajan on June 24 filed a Right to Information (RTI) petition with the Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL). In the response from the business development department on August 6, it was clarified that CMRL has awarded no separate contract for parking in the Uptown area.

As per the RTI response, the contract for Urban Square was awarded to M/s BNR Estates, a real estate company, for ten years, starting from April 2021 till April 2031.

The contract has been awarded for the entire commercial space, including the parking facilities, separated into four zones. The parking in Kathipara urban square includes: zone 1 (1,152 sqm), zone 2 (600 sqm), zone 3 (4,037 sqm), and zone 4 (5,500 sqm).

Speaking to DT Next, an IT employee and a resident of Adambakkam highlighted the misuse of public space and the lack of regular inspection by the government departments. “Once a contractor takes up a tender, that too for a long period, they begin claiming authority over the area, regardless of it being a public space.”

“Around a couple of months back, there were allegations that the public was not allowed to park at certain locations in the vicinity, due to a few political parties’ intervention and directions,” he said.

The videos of public interaction with the staff in the vicinity on the issue and the public refusing to pay parking charges were released earlier. However, it is to be noted that in July, the Chennai Corporation announced that no parking fees to be collected in the city anymore.

Meanwhile, there was no response from CMRL to confirm whether the contractor can levy parking charges and address issues of mismanagement.