No Action Against Illegal Encroachments in Rawalpindi Angers Public: Report

Rawalpindi administration’s negligence of illegal encroachments has drawn the ire of residents. The Punjab Government’s lofty claims about ensuring smooth traffic flow have also become moot amid persistent troubles.

The administration’s policy mandates action against encroachers. However, a survey from The News suggests that the encroachers have made the traffic conditions even more miserable across Rawalpindi.

Areas such as Moti Bazar, Raja Bazar, Circular road China market, bara Bazar, Saddar, Tench Bhatta, etc. have become a nightmare for road users. The surveyees state that the administration’s ignorance is to blame for the ongoing situation. A cart vendor, Jumma Khan told the scribe:

Illegal car parking is regular, even in the presence of traffic cops, creating massive traffic jams and causing accidents while proscribed motorcycles parking around all city shopping centres including the Moti Bazar, Raja Bazar, Circular road China market, bara Bazar, Saddar, Tench Bhatta and other areas of the city and cantonment had made the situation so bad that even a pedestrian or women with children could not move.

The report adds that an official, who requested anonymity, admitted that the authorities collect an illegal ‘monthly fee’ from the vendors to allow the encroachment.

Meanwhile, Sharjeel Mir, President of the Punjab Traders Welfare Association, stated that if the increasing encroachments are not resolved, traders will be forced to close their doors. Mir urged the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner to investigate and resolve the long-standing problem before it worsens.

President Moti Bazar Chaudhry Muhammad Iqbal urged the city administration and traffic police to play their proper roles in removing encroachment from the city’s busiest roads. He demanded that the government devise a plan to relocate wholesale markets from the city to the proposed ring road to alleviate traffic congestion.