‘CCC plans night markets for footpath vendors’

Chattogram City Corporation (CCC) plans to introduce night markets at designated locations for a limited period to accommodate small traders and keep footpaths free from encroachment, Mayor Dr Shahadat Hossain said on Wednesday.
He made the remarks at a law and order meeting at Chattogram Circuit House, attended by Water Resources Minister Md Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee as the chief guest.
The mayor said eviction drives affect traders and vendors who earn their livelihoods from footpaths and roadside spaces. “Evicting them without arranging rehabilitation or alternative livelihood opportunities only means the same problem will return,” he said.
He said Chattogram had become a cosmopolitan city, attracting people from across the country. “So, along with urban management, we also need to consider social security,” he said.
The mayor said coordinated action by service agencies was needed to keep cleared areas free from encroachment.
On law and order, he said moral and social education was needed to tackle drug abuse, terrorism, extortion, sexual harassment and juvenile gangs.
He said CCC was modernising traffic management and collecting dengue data to identify hotspots and classify areas into red, yellow and green zones.