The parking area at the Centenary Farmers Market in Thimphu is undergoing a major renovation. The works intended to give the area a major facelift, however, seem to be creating inconvenience for the shopkeepers there. With the area currently closed to traffic, the shopkeepers say their business is affected with customers declining by more than 50 per cent.
This parking zone used to be a busy area for both shopkeepers and vegetable vendors.
However, the area now wears a different look. The ongoing renovation works in the parking area, which began mid of June have left the market area without parking space.
Coupled with noise from the construction works, shopkeepers are finding it difficult to attract customers.
Some shopkeepers say their current earnings can barely meet the rental charges. The shopkeepers here have to pay a minimum Nu 50,000 as a monthly rental charge.
“My business is affected. This is because they have blocked the road and vehicles cannot pass through. It would be better if they at least let the marketing van pass through as we order in huge quantities. We are also losing customers since they do not prefer carrying the items from the shop to their vehicle. Our sales have dropped by almost 70-80 per cent,” said Neten Zangpo, a shopkeeper.
“The customers are not coming here as there is no parking area. Since we have no customers, our fruits and vegetables are decaying and we have to throw them away. This has been happening for more than a month now,” said Jashoda Sharma, a vegetable Vendor.
Meanwhile, Thimphu Thromde stated that the deadline for the project is till the end of this year.
However, the thromde added they have requested the contractor to prioritise the project completion before the deadline.
But a few shopkeepers are worried if the renovation will finish before the deadline.
“We understand that the parking renovation is beneficial for us, but the duration is a bit long. This is severely affecting us. If the thromde speeds up the renovation, it will immensely benefit all of us. The workers at the site are working, but we can see that they are only working a few hours a day. I feel like they are not working consistently,” said Pema Wangchuk, a shopkeeper.
According to the thromde, renovation work was halted in the past few days due to continuous rainfall.
The entire parking area has been laid with a base course as of now. It has yet to be black-topped.
Deki Lhazom
Edited by Phub Gyem
