The Oberoi Grand has written to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and Kolkata Police, seeking their help in moving hawkers out of the Grand arcade so that repair work on the arcade’s columns can begin.

A lawyer representing the hotel, who sent the letters to the authorities, said on Sunday that ongoing repairs are being delayed as engineers are unable to work on the columns due to hawker stalls set up around them. The hotel wants the area cordoned off to allow work to proceed safely.

The Oberoi Grand was shut down in August 2024, with an initial two-year deadline for repairs and renovation of the heritage property.

“We are facing tremendous hardship due to the hawkers not being moved, which is delaying the repairs and renovation. Initially, a two-year period was fixed for reopening, but now it seems it will take longer,” said Emon Bhattacharya, advocate for EIH Limited, the owners of Oberoi Grand.

The letters were sent in the first week of January, but no action has been taken so far, he said.

“A bench of Calcutta High Court had asked the KMC and Kolkata Police to extend full cooperation for the repairs. Any failure to do so would amount to contempt of court,” Bhattacharya added.

In October 2024, a division bench comprising Justice Gaurang Kanth and Justice Joymalya Bagchi had requested “Kolkata Municipal Corporation, Town Vending Committee, police authorities as well as the street hawkers who are occupying the footpath under the arcade to render necessary cooperation and not to obstruct the repair works.”

On Sunday, Bhattacharya said engineers involved in the restoration need to work on sets of columns simultaneously.

“The hawker stalls on the arcade are preventing this. The columns have weakened, and repairs may cause chunks of plaster or ceiling components to fall, which could injure the hawkers or anyone nearby. That is why the space needs to be cleared,” he said.

The hotel group has completed all preparatory and logistical formalities for the commencement of repairs.

One of the letters also flagged that hawkers were using more than one-third of the pavement width, a violation of a 2023 Calcutta High Court order.

A KMC official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, assured cooperation. “It is a declared stand of the KMC that we will help Oberoi Grand in its renovation. The hotel is a pride of Calcutta,” the official said.

Metro had reported last week that hawkers were using sticks to project their stalls beyond the one-third demarcation on the pavement. While the bases of the stalls take up only one-third of the pavement, the sticks and hanging garments extend outwards, shrinking the space available for pedestrians. Some hawkers were also using scaffolding erected for renovation work to support their stalls.

There was no change in the situation when Metro visited the Grand arcade on Sunday.

State street vending rules of the state government stipulate that hawker stalls cannot take up more than one-third of a pavement’s width, leaving at least two-thirds free for pedestrians. At the Grand arcade, as in many other parts of the city, this rule is not being followed.

In a December 18, 2023 order, Justice Amrita Sinha of Calcutta High Court asked the KMC and New Market police station “to keep strict vigil to ensure the vendors do not
encroach upon the 2/3rd portion of the pavement meant for pedestrians”.

An officer from New Market police station said: “We visit the area frequently. The Oberoi Grand has also started its repairs at the arcade. They have begun work near the gates.” The officer added that they plan to visit the stretch again and enforce the court order.