Within a week of eviction, Gulistan footpaths are back under hawkers, with mobile shops even in front of the Secretariat gate

Within just a week of an eviction drive, the picture at Gulistan in the capital has changed again. Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) runs eviction drives every few days to keep footpaths free of occupation. After a drive the hawkers leave the busy roads, but they occupy the footpaths again.

A visit to the spot found mobile shops set up across the footpaths and goods being sold by occupying the roads. The picture is the same almost everywhere, including Gulistan Zero Point, Bangabandhu Avenue, Baitul Mukarram Mosque and the areas adjoining the stadium. Mobile hawker shops have even been set up in front of the Secretariat gate. Almost the entire road from Gulistan Shopping Complex to Golap Shah Mazar is under the hawkers' occupation.

Towards the end of last month, an eviction drive against footpath hawkers was carried out under the leadership of DSCC administrator Bir Muktijoddha Md Abdus Salam. Asked by journalists at the time how hawkers return despite repeated drives, the DSCC administrator said that whenever roads and footpaths are illegally occupied, a drive will be carried out in the interest of city residents. He said all kinds of steps, including repeated discussions, requests and warnings, had been taken, and that from now on goods would be seized and, if necessary, legal action and arrests would follow for sitting illegally.

Even after this DSCC warning, the picture has not changed. It has been seen that if a drive is carried out in the morning, the hawkers set up their shops again in the afternoon.

Several pedestrians said they fall into trouble because of businesses occupying roads and footpaths. Vehicles cannot move properly and traffic jams persist. The pedestrians complained that Gulistan is such a busy area that its roads should be smooth so that there is no congestion, yet the footpaths cannot be walked on and vehicle movement on the roads is also hampered. They said the shops have occupied almost half of the road and the whole of the footpath.

Attempts were made to speak to the footpath occupiers, but none agreed to speak. However, a hawker, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that when they are removed they sit again because they have nothing else to do. They earn their living, run their families and educate their children from business here. Raising the question of how they would survive if they are not allowed to do business, he said they have no designated place where they can sit and trade.

On the matter, DSCC chief executive officer Md Khaybar Rahman said keeping footpaths and roads free of occupation is one of the DSCC's most important tasks. That is why drives are being carried out constantly and the administrator himself is leading many of them. He said there are still shortcomings in some places and that for this reason the eviction programme cannot be fully implemented.

Khaybar Rahman also said the city corporation is now in a strict position on this issue. If hawkers sit outside the place or boundary designated by the city corporation for them, their goods are seized and fines are imposed. He said eviction drives will be carried out again in the places that hawkers still occupy illegally.