- Motorcycle market on Akbar Road remains shut for third day
- 86 shops in auto-spareparts market off M.A. Jinnah Road sealed
- Officials say shops to be unsealed after traders give undertaking to not use footpaths, roads for placing their goods
The expansion of the drive against encroachments — from owners of roadside eateries to traders who contribute millions in taxes daily — raised many eyebrows.
Officials claimed that as many as 86 shops in the autospareparts market were sealed because vehicles parked in front of the shops for repairs encroached on the main road, causing traffic snarls.
A similar reason was given by the authorities for sealing as many as 115 shops in the Akbar Road motorcycle market, which remained shut on Monday, as well as dozens of other shops in the city’s business district.
Deputy Commissioner South Javed Nabi Khoso said that the shopkeepers at Tibet Centre had been given warning three times to remove encroachments in front of their shops.
He claimed that most mechanics and electricians who worked on the roadside in front of the sealed shops were hired by shop owners, seeking to grow their businesses. “Due to double parking of vehicles, the road had become too congested, affecting the flow of traffic,” he said.
Shopkeepers told to submit affidavit
A meeting held on Monday decided that any shopkeeper who does not submit an affidavit providing written assurance of compliance with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) will not be allowed to open shops.
It was decided that shops which submitted undertakings to the DCs would be reopened in a phased manner and any establishment that violated the SOPs would have its premises sealed for three days.
The DC-South said that after the affidavit was submitted, any further breach of the SOPs would result in arrests and the registration of FIRs against the violators.
Officials said that the authorities had sealed as many as 196 eateries in different parts of the city during the past three days.
Karachi Commissioner SyedHassanNaqvi told Dawn that the city’s antiencroachment campaign would remain in force, and that no shop or eatery would be permitted to place articles or goods on walkways.
He said that the crackdown would continue to curb the growing trend of encroachments and obstructions on footpaths, roads and service lanes.
‘Action may harm economy’
However, traders dismissed the government action as unnecessary, warning that it would harm their businesses and the country’s economy.
Muhammad Sabir Shaikh, a former officebearer of the Motorcycle Dealers Association, said that showcasing automobiles and bikes in front of their outlets is a worldwide practice.
“Authorities should have marked a lane in front of the shops for displaying motorcycles,” he demanded.
“The whole exercise, under the guise of an antiencroachment drive, is simply aimed at raising rates,” alleged another bike dealer, without elaborating.