‘No hawking on roads, footpaths under any circumstances’

Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Administrator Md Abdus Salam on Thursday warned that hawking would not be allowed on roads or footpaths under any circumstances, pledging strict action against illegal occupiers.
He was speaking to reporters after visiting an eviction drive from Gulistan Zero Point to Dhaka Trade Centre at 11am and 3:30pm. Authorities removed illegal shops and seized goods, clearing the entire stretch from Zero Point to Dhaka Trade Centre, the city corporation said. Abdus Salam said eviction drives would continue whenever roads and footpaths were illegally occupied.
Responding to allegations that hawkers were being evicted without rehabilitation, he urged journalists not to encourage illegal occupation.
The DSCC could not take responsibility for all displaced people nationwide, he said, adding that a limited number of hawkers could operate at designated places if they did not obstruct public movement. Others would have to return to their home districts. “We must save this Dhaka; there is no alternative,” he added.