Melaka: The Housing and Local Government Ministry (KPKT) has sanctioned an RM15 million allocation for the reconstruction of Pasar Besar Melaka Sentral at its original location adjacent to the Melaka Sentral Terminal.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Melaka Historic City Council (MBMB) Mayor Datuk Shadan Othman announced that the tender for the market’s construction is anticipated to be issued in April or May of the upcoming year. The construction is expected to span approximately two years, with the completion projected for 2028.

The market, envisioned with the ‘Serambi Melaka’ design concept, will be a modern single-storey building housing 330 traders and will include necessary facilities. Mayor Shadan highlighted that the new single-storey structure aims to facilitate easier access for traders and visitors, notably benefiting the elderly in purchasing essential goods.

The announcement was made following the Melaka State Level World Town Planning Day 2025 celebration, officiated by Melaka state secretary Datuk Azhar Arshad and attended by Town and Country Planning director-general Datuk Dr Alias Rameli.

In response to past concerns about land subsidence in the area, Mayor Shadan assured that the site has undergone thorough technical evaluations, with the soil structure deemed safe for the planned construction. Previously, in 2016, the old Pasar Besar Melaka Sentral experienced land subsidence, leading the Malaysian Public Works Institute (IKRAM) to declare the structure unsafe. Consequently, traders were relocated to a temporary site in Bachang, and the original building was demolished.