Pineapple hub set to come up in Siliguri

Kolkata: Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority (SJDA) is developing a pineapple hub at Bidhannagar area in Siliguri to give a boost to the agro-industry in the area.

Besides giving a boost to the agro-industry in the area, the construction of the hub will also help in decongesting the crucial Bidhan Road as the pin apple stalls along the road would be shifted to the hub.

The hub is coming up with at least 200 stalls, which will be completed in phases. At the same time a cold storage will also be set up to help farmers and traders in preserving their produce. The hub will be prepared in such a way that all the stalls will be situated in the first floor itself with a unique parking facility that will facilitate easy loading and unloading of goods.

Nantu Paul, the vice chairman of SJDA, said: "There are around 150 pineapple stalls that are set up along the busy road every day. This creates traffic congestion that leads to massive inconvenience to people. So the initiative has been taken to construct an exclusive pineapple hub in the heart of the city itself."

"Construction work has started and is going on in full swing. If everything goes as planned then the work of the first phase will be completed soon after the Puja and it will become possible to shift a section of traders," Paul said.

Construction of the hub was also a longstanding demand for the traders in the area that the development authorities are targeting to fulfil by the end of this fiscal.