With 70% of the work on the ₹18.48-crore integrated vegetable and grocery market at Solar in Erode completed, officials expect the remaining works to be finished within the next three to four months.

The Nethaji Vegetable and Fruit Market Complex on R.K.V. Road functioned for several years with over 580 shops. Owing to space constraints and traffic congestion, the market was shifted to the V.O.C. Park grounds in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subsequently, the old market complex was demolished and a new facility with 268 shops was constructed at a cost of ₹29.85 crore. However, as the new complex could not accommodate over 700 traders, the Corporation proposed the construction of an integrated market at Solar. The then Chief Minister M.K. Stalin announced the project on March 13, 2024, and laid the foundation during his visit to Erode on December 20, 2024.

Construction commenced in 2025 with an 18-month completion schedule. The market is being developed in three modules — the first with 702 shops, the second with 32 shops, and the third with 60 shops. The facility will also have four godowns each for fruits and vegetables, groceries, and rice, besides 1.46 acres earmarked for parking two-wheelers and four-wheelers.

The integrated market, spread across 4,22,532 sq. ft., will accommodate 794 shops with a built-up area of 8,909.4 sq. m. In addition, a compound wall is being constructed at a cost of ₹4 crore. Though the works were scheduled for completion by June 2026, around 30% of the work remains pending and is under progress.

A senior Corporation engineer told The Hindu that the works were progressing at a brisk pace and the remaining works would be completed within the next three to four months.