Footpath for pedestrians or shop owners?

4 April 2009, 18:00 PM

Hasibur Rahman Bilu, Bogra

The cooker of a restaurant is set on the footpath at Baragola in Bogra town, top, items of a variety store kept on the walkway near Sadar Police Station.Photo: STAR

A large number of shop owners as well as floating traders beside the roads in the centre of Bogra town have kept the footpaths occupied for long, making them virtually unusable for passer-by. Most of the footpaths from Satmatha to Khander area and other busy roads like Borogola to Foteali Bazar and Satmatha to Borogola traffic point have been occupied for a long time allegedly with the help of employees of Bogra Burasava and law enforcement agencies, locals said. Traders and vendors have occupied footpaths of a few busy roads in the town for long and the authorities have now decided to evict them soon with the help of local people and administration, Bogra Pourashava Mayor AKM Mahabubur Rahman said. A committee headed by Bogra Additional District Magistrate Md Anwar Hossain was formed on March 12 to take necessary steps to evict illegal traders from the footpaths and streets, Assistant Superintendent of Police Mohammad Basir Uddin said. “We cannot get benefit of the footpaths as those are partially or fully occupied. Traders have occupied both of the footpaths from Borogola Traffic Police Post to Foteali Bazar,” said Md Abdul Mazid of Khandar area in Bogra town. “I started shoe business on the footpath of Kabi Nazrul Islam Sarak near Bogra Sadar Police Station about six years ago. Some employees of Bogra Pourasava advised me to vacate the footpath five or six months back,” Jahidul Islam, 36, said. Another trader Aftab Ali, 50, said he started his business 15 years ago on the same footpath but nobody asked him to leave the place.