Trespass turns Begunbarhi a living hell

Begunbarhi, the residential bloc within Tejgaon Industrial Area, has been turned into an overcrowded and chaotic mess due to the apathy of civic authorities.

The area lies adjacent to Hatirjheel project, towards Bijoy Sarani Link Road from the Saat Rastar Morh.

Begunbarhi is home to educational institutions, government and private residences, apart from the decades-old Bottola Bazaar, the market that grew centring a Banyan tree, after whom it was named. 

This very market that has been a source of sustenance for the residents all along is now the cause of their woes.  

Barely two months after the market got city corporation's approval, following the 2014 general election, the area around it started to transform.

The footpaths, built some 10 years ago after slums lining them were razed down, have been devoured by street vendors, road-side stalls and shops, forcing the pedestrians to walk through the main thoroughfare.

Manoeuvring through the jammed road, avoiding crash, is quite an effort. 

Scrap trader Lucky Begum has a shop near the residential building of the Dhaka Polytechnic Institute. Her husband, Delowar Hossain, works as a night guard at the institute.

She admitted building the shop herself, adding that they did not have to pay any rent to anyone for it.

“We had a shop on that side, behind the polytechnic. The market association promised us this spot when they evicted us from there.”

“Soon after we first set up the shop, some people from the government had removed it. We built it again. If they say we cannot run a shop here, we will leave.”

An office of Juba League, the youth affiliate of ruling Awami League, was set up right in front of the women’s dormitory of the Polytechnic Institute.

But after a private television channel aired a report on the brazen encroachment, a magistrate brought down the office along with other structures that illegally sprouted on the footpaths.

But the space was again grabbed and makeshift shops were set up only a month after the eviction drive.

The place where the Juba League office once stood has now turned into a large pit and became part of the open drain.

Kawser Alam has been selling groceries at the market for nearly 22 years and agrees that the shop was not supposed to be here.

“But since the market committee got the approval of the city corporation, no one says anything. So we are here.”

The campaign office of councillor Md Shafiuddin Shafi was set up just across the street from Alam’s shop. Although it has been months since the city polls ended, it is still there.

Locals say vehicles take the Begunbarhi road whenever there is a tailback on the main road and it is also used as a route to go to the Hatirjheel. That adds to the traffic congestion.

“Every type of vehicle including big buses, trucks, ambulances and cars ply through the Begunbarhi road whenever there is congestion on the main road,” Nasrin Sultana, a resident, told bdnews24.com.

“Since the road has been narrowed down by the road-side shops, pedestrians often meet with mishaps.”

“Children of nearby schools use the street. They are at risk of being run over. We generally avoid going out to places that are within a walking distance due to the hassle.”

“What is the need to set up shops by grabbing footpaths and roads when a market place is already there?” she wondered. 

Shops set up encroaching footpaths can be seen all over Tejgaon, including areas like Kuniparha and Colony Bazaar.