Dhaka Bachao demands rehab for hawkers before eviction

 
The Dhaka Bachao Andolon has demanded alternative jobs and humane rehabilitation for hawkers and battery-run auto-rickshaw drivers alongside efforts to clear the capital’s roads and footpaths of illegal occupation.

The demand was made at a press briefing in front of the Bangladesh National Museum in Shahbagh on Thursday.
Sohani Shifa, president of the organisation, said the movement was not against the livelihoods of low-income people. Rather, it aimed to make Dhaka a safe, orderly and liveable city.

She said hawkers occupying footpaths force women, children, students and elderly people to walk on busy roads, putting their lives at risk. The unregulated movement of battery-run auto-rickshaws on main roads also worsens traffic congestion and raises the risk of accidents.

She stressed that hawkers should not be evicted suddenly and auto-rickshaws should not be banned abruptly without providing alternative livelihoods.

Shifa proposed creating jobs for hawkers in their home districts through small and cottage industries, including industries in estates managed by the Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC).

She also suggested setting up designated holiday, evening and night markets in Dhaka to allow hawkers to continue their businesses in an organised way.

For auto-rickshaw drivers, she proposed technical training, easy-term microloans and employment opportunities in manufacturing industries and other sectors.

Shifa welcomed recent government and Dhaka North City Corporation initiatives to clear roads and footpaths. However, she said the areas are often occupied again after eviction drives, making regular monitoring necessary for a lasting solution.

She said Dhaka Bachao Andolon had sent letters to 20 MPs representing the capital, urging them to coordinate with police and city corporations to keep roads and footpaths free from encroachment in their constituencies.

The organisation’s general secretary, Naimul Hasan Nuhash, said eviction drives against hawkers and auto-rickshaw drivers would not bring lasting results unless alternative livelihood opportunities were ensured.

He outlined three key demands: alternative employment and humane rehabilitation, keeping main roads and footpaths free from hawkers and illegal vehicles, and forming a special monitoring cell in each parliamentary constituency under the leadership of the respective MP.

Nuhash said regular monitoring was essential to prevent roads and footpaths from being occupied again after eviction drives.