Fire-affected traders in the Bangabazar area have set up stalls on the footpath underneath a flyover on the south side of the market complex to begin selling any goods that the managed to save from the recent blaze.
Around 800 traders were seen displaying their stocks on the footpath from Saturday morning.
The temporary shops were supposed to be set up in the Bangabazar shopping complex, but the plan did not proceed as the authorities need more time to clear out the debris.
"Four days ago, I was the owner of four shops. I had 25 employees working under me. Today I am on the street myself. I was supposed to pay the employees on Thursday, but where will I get the money?" said Shahadat Hossain, one of the traders on the footpath.
Mehedi Hasan/Dhaka Tribune"In February, I took a loan of Tk 3.5 lakh from BRAC Bank and Tk4 lakh from an NGO. I picked up the clothes at the godown and went home on Monday night. I came on Tuesday and saw that everything was over. Now I have no choice but to do business on the pavement. I have to support my family," he added.
Meanwhile, a bank account has been opened to provide financial support to the affected traders. The information was disclosed in a press conference organized at Bangabazar on Saturday, along with a request to send donations to the account.
The IFIC Bank Ltd savings account number is 0200094066031.
Addressing a press conference at Bangabazar, Shop Owners' Association President Helal Uddin said that the deposited amount in the account will initially be handed over to Prime Minister's Private Industry and Investment Adviser Salman F Rahman and Dhaka South City Corporation Mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh.
Mentioning that a list of the affected businessmen is being prepared, Helal said that the names of the affected businessmen and their financial losses would be assessed and after that the deposited amount would be handed over to them.
Mehedi Hasan/Dhaka TribuneSome of the traders expressed fear that only shop owners would receive compensation, while tenant traders would be left behind.
"The government will compensate the shop owners. We were tenant traders here. Now if the shop owners consider it, it is a different matter,” said Parvez, one of the traders.
“There is no hope of getting the shop back. It is not possible to make up for the damage that has been done. But we have to live, so I started selling on the road. I never thought that I would have to sell clothes on the side of the road. The fire not only destroyed our shop, but also our lives,” he added.
Zahid Hossain, another trader sitting on the sidewalk, said: "In this one fire, the shop and my capital are all gone. I am in the same situation as I was when I came to Dhaka 15 years ago with no money. I have to start all over again."
Earlier, Salman F Rahman, adviser on Private Industry and Investment to the prime minister, had said businessmen affected by the Bangabazar fire would be given the opportunity to do business temporarily before Eid to compensate for the loss to some extent.
Bangabazar fire-affected businessmen set up shop on the footpath Mehedi Hasan/Dhaka Tribune“As soon as possible this place will be cleaned and the shopkeepers will be seated to make up the losses to some extent. But there are some legal issues here. So, this place cannot be cleared before completing the legal process,” he said to reporters after visiting the area affected by the fire in the Bangabazar.
Attack on Fire Service HQ: Construction dispute may have been a factor
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Khandker Golam Faruq has said that there was a dispute between the businessmen of Bangabazar regarding the proposal to build a multi-storied commercial building on the site.
Whether that played any part in the fire that razed the market to the ground last week would come out in the investigation, the commissioner added.
The DMP commissioner came up with the remarks responding to reporters' questions after a program at the FDC in the city on Saturday.
Replying to another question, Commissioner Faruq termed the attack on the nearby Fire Service and Civil Defence headquarters during the Bangabazar fire as “pre-planned.”
He also said that a total of 11 people have been arrested since the attack on the headquarters.
