Unable to address the problems that have for long been plaguing New Market, a section of traders has decided to start a protest against the Calcutta Municipal Corporation (CMC), which owns the central Calcutta shopping hub.
New Market, which is spread across 15 blocks in the old and new complexes and has nearly 1,000 shops, will celebrate its 150th year on January 1.
With footfall on the decline and business taking a hit around the time of the year when New Market is usually abuzz with shoppers, traders from the shopping address have been decided to hit the streets in protest.
They took the decision at a meeting a fortnight back, which was also attended by representatives of nine other markets in the area — including Shreeram Arcade, Firpo’s and Treasure Island — where, too, the business is suffering because of encroachments by hawkers.
At the end of the nearly two-hour meeting, the traders also decided to set up a roadblock in protest against the civic body’s alleged apathy.
“We have sent many letters to the Calcutta Municipal Corporation (CMC) over the last year and a half, highlighting our plight. Hawkers have eaten up almost all the available space. Shoppers don’t visit our market because there is no parking space left. The diminishing footfall has robbed us of our festive business,” said Uday Kumar Shaw, general secretary of SS Hogg Market (New Market) Traders’ Association.
“Since nothing has changed, the traders unanimously decided to hit the road to tell everyone about their plight. This will be our last resort. We’ve never done this before but traders are fed up.”
On Friday, Bertram Street, in front of New Market, had hawkers almost all over the place. There were three layers of hawkers — one layer occupied the footpaths, another blocked the portions near the kerbs and the third, made of “flying” traders, treated the carriageway as their vending zones.
Shoppers squeezed their way through the multitude of hawkers and no motorist seemed to dare to drive past.
Inside the old market complex, there was a scant afternoon crowd. Most shops were empty.
“Shoppers don’t want to visit New Market because of the unruly hawkers outside. There’s hardly any business. Footfall is even lower now because those who would visit the market from Bangladesh aren’t coming because of the upcoming elections there,” said Ashok Gupta, president of the SS Hogg Market Traders’ Association.
“We pay our rent and maintenance fees to the CMC, but the civic body is least bothered about the growing number of hawkers.”
New Market has 27 entrances and exits covering various zones, which include the old market complex, multi-storeyed new complex, vegetable market and the poultry-fish-meat corner.
“This area around New Market, including Humayun Place, Lindsay Street and Bertram Street, is no longer a place where you will want to drive down with your family for shopping,” said Brij Bhushan Tiwari, president of the Chowringhee Traders Association. “We have sent enough letters and appeals to the CMC. Now we’ll set up roadblocks. There seems no other way.”
Senior CMC officials said they have allocated funds for doing up the facade of New Market before the celebrations for the 150th year begin.
“We have written to the chief postmaster general to bring out a commemorative stamp on New Market. Our engineering cell has been asked to do a facelift of the market,” Amiruddin (Bobby), mayoral council member in charge of markets, told Metro.
Senior officials of the CMC’s market department said the town vending committee was working on the hawker issue.