BANDANA SETHI, OP
Bhubaneswar: Built in 1991 to streamline Bhubaneswar’s emerging retail sector, Indradhanu Market (or ID Market) spans 7 acres of General Administration department land. Developed by the Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA), the site features multiple structures housing banks, government offices, and various shops. Initially, the BDA leased commercial and shop-cum-residential units to approximately 470 traders.
Historical roots & the Gandhi Market displacement
The market’s demographic traces back to August 9, 1991, when roughly 547 small vendors from Gandhi Market — which had operated in front of the Nayapalli Durga Mandap since 1987 — were evicted following the construction of complex for NABARD.
While 313 of the vendors received permanent shops within Indradhanu Market, 234 remaining vendors received temporary rehabilitation with promises of permanent relocation later.
Because the administration failed to secure alternative spaces over the years, these displaced vendors and other newcomers gradually set up businesses inside Indradhanu Market. This dynamic split the vendors into two groups – the Indradhanu Market Business Development Association (representing leaseholders) and the Indradhanu Market Small Traders’ Association (representing temporary and new vendors).
Despite a lack of formal coordination, both groups have coexisted for 35 years. However, due to their lack of permanent settlement, they face frequent eviction drives by the BMC and BDA, leaving them constantly anxious about their survival.
Daily operations
Operating daily from 9 am to 11 pm, Indradhanu Market closes on the third Saturday of every month. The evening market run by the small traders’ association draws heavy crowds, peaking during weekly markets held every Thursday and Sunday.
Shoppers from neighbourhoods like Nayapalli, IRC Village, Salia Sahi, Shastri Nagar, Bharatpur, Jayadev Vihar, and Samantarapur frequent the market for vegetables, fruits, tribal goods, meat, toys, betel items, chaat, and handia.
Key challenges
Approximately 600 current traders have been facing a host of challenges.
Most vendors operate under makeshift tarpaulin sheets, on pushcarts, or on sacks spread directly on the ground due to the lack of organised vending spaces. The BMC’s irregular cleaning of the area further adds to the problem, leaving traders to manage waste disposal on their own. These conditions also cause considerable inconvenience to shoppers.
With no municipal lighting for the evening rush, traders rely on generators. Two toilets and one urinal are managed by the association, funded by a Rs 5 daily fee collected strictly from active vendors.
The BDA, General Administration department, and BMC have conducted three joint surveys for permanent rehabilitation, but no permanent solution has been enacted.
Community, governance, & leadership
Despite these hardships, the market maintains a vibrant community spirit. It hosts a grand six-day Ganesh Puja featuring an Annachhatra (free meal service) and a Bhagabat Ashtaprahari devotional programme, all at no cost to the traders.
Elections for the small traders’ association president are held every two to three years on a day the market remains closed. Any member can contest, and the general body committee votes to select the winner. Notably, Anjan Nath has served as president for the past 21 years without facing opposition.
Indradhanu Market Small Traders’ Association office-bearers
■ President: Anjan Nath
■ Vice President: Kuna Hota
■ Secretary: Prashant Routray
■ Joint Secretary: Baban Sahu
■ Treasurers: Subash Panda & Kalandi Sahu
Without rehabilitating the traders, the BMC comes at its own discretion and repeatedly evicts them. As a result, traders have been running their livelihoods from their stalls and shops amid uncertainty for years. The BMC should provide them permanent spaces at the earliest. Waterlogging has also become a major problem in the market and needs to be addressed.
ANJAN NATH | INDRADHANU MARKET
SMALL TRADERS’ ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT
The GA department and BMC jointly conducted three surveys to rehabilitate us. The then BMC commissioner, PC Chaudhary, had also informed the department in writing about our rehabilitation. But years have passed without any facilities being provided. We have repeatedly demanded that the BMC take over the market currently being managed by the association, collect taxes and provide basic facilities. That, too, has not happened.
PRASHANT ROUTRAY | INDRADHANU MARKET
SMALL TRADERS’ ASSOCIATION SECRETARY