Bhubaneswar: The civic body will make one more attempt to auction or even sell its share of shops in the BMC-Keshari Mall at Unit-II.

The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation had in January decided to auction its share of 73 shops online. But, it was able to auction off only 25 of its units, while there were no takers for the rest.

The civic body developed the commercial complex in public-private partnership mode, under which it has a share of 35 per cent, while its private partner has the rest. The complex has 214 shops, of which the civic body holds 73.

Sources said there was poor response from entrepreneurs to the corporation's shops, mainly because of their location and price. "After the project was completed, the private partner tactfully took away their shops at primary locations in the mall, whereas the civic body's ones were left behind," said a shop owner. In the process, the civic body is losing annual revenue of Rs 4 crore.

He said the civic body's shops were located in such spots that no one would notice them. "A businessman would never risk owning a unit where he or she would get no customers. That's why, only few businessmen evinced interest in taking the civic body's share," he said.

"We have issued the notice to re-auction the units. We have revised the prices and hope for a good participation. The mall is in a primary location and whoever takes the shops will get benefits only," said a civic official.

But, he failed to answer why the corporation itself could not earn profits if the mall location was crucial from the consumers' point of view.

It is not the first instance that the civic body is facing problems in letting its share in the malls. It had faced similar problems at BMC-Bhavani Mall, following which it started giving the space to government agencies. Now, this mall at Saheed Nagar houses the office of Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited.

Mayor Ananta Narayan Jena said the mall was located in one of the primary locations of the city and would be in high demand shortly.