One Year After Inauguration, MLCP Still Shut
Nearly a year after its inauguration, the ₹88-crore Multi-Level Car Parking (MLCP) facility built by the Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Region Development Authority (VMRDA) at Siripuram Junction remains closed to the public, even as parking congestion continues unabated in one of the city’s busiest commercial hubs.
The project was conceived to address the chronic shortage of parking space in the area. However, motorists continue to park vehicles along adjoining roads as the facility has not been made operational despite the completion of construction.
The situation contrasts with the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation’s (GVMC) multi-level parking complex at Jagadamba Junction, which has been functioning for several years, with civic authorities discouraging roadside parking to ensure effective utilisation of the facility.
At Siripuram, hundreds of visitors to VMRDA Udyog Bhavan park their vehicles daily along the stretch between the office complex and the MLCP building. Once this space is filled, vehicles spill over onto the road leading to Gurajada Kalakshetram, aggravating traffic congestion.
The 12-storey building, designed in the shape of a ship’s deck, has meanwhile become a sought-after commercial address. Rentals are reportedly around ₹140 per sq. ft., compared to ₹65-80 per sq. ft. in most other commercial areas of the city.
Originally planned with five parking floors and the remaining floors for commercial and institutional use, the building now houses the offices of the South Coast Railway (SCoR) Zone, the Ratan Tata Innovation Hub, Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), and a few other organisations.
One of the five parking floors was later converted into office space at an estimated cost of ₹4.5 crore and leased out, reducing the parking area to four floors. Of these, two basement levels have reportedly been reserved for SCoR officials’ vehicles, leaving only two floors for public parking with capacity for about 150 cars and 200 two-wheelers. This section too remains unopened.
Residents and commuters say the prolonged delay has defeated the project’s purpose and have urged the authorities to operationalise the public parking facility and introduce effective parking management around Siripuram Junction.