Tin shades have been built as a replacement for plastic sheets above hawkers’ stalls on a footpath in Gariahat.
Plastic sheets have been removed from many places of the western footpath, between the Gariahat and Golpark intersections in south Kolkata, giving the stretch a cleaner look and allowing sunlight to finally reach the sidewalk.
But plastic sheets — and cloths on some stretches — can soon make a comeback as hawker leaders said dust from the road and rain during the monsoon will destroy their wares if there is no covering around the stalls, which is now missing in the section where tin shades have been built.
Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) recently said it would allow hawkers to build a tin shade above their stalls as a replacement for plastic sheets, which are flammable. Hawking rules framed by the state government ban the use of plastic sheets in hawkers’ stalls.
On Monday, mayor Firhad Hakim and mayoral council member Debashis Kumar visited Gariahat to inspect the newly built tin shade.
Kumar, who heads the KMC’s parks and squares department, told The Telegraph the removal of plastic sheets had made the names of shops lining the footpath visible from the road.
“There are two immediate benefits of the move — the threat of a fire spreading through plastic sheets has reduced and pedestrians can see the sky from the footpath,” Kumar said.
“The tin shades have not gone beyond one-third the width of the footpath.”
Hawking rules allow hawkers to occupy only a third of the width of a pavement.
Kumar said the KMC wanted to bring a change to Gariahat’s footpaths and emulate it elsewhere in the city. “We will progress gradually. Let them first build the tin shades along the entire length of the footpath,” said Kumar.
Plastic sheets removed from hawkers’ stalls on a stretch of Gariahat on Monday. Sanat Kr Sinha
“The footpath is about 13ft wide and the tin shade is 4.5ft wide,” said a hawker leader.
A Gariahat resident said on Monday that he was pleasantly surprised to see that plastic sheets had been pulled down from over a large number of stalls.
“Stretches of the footpath are looking cleaner but there are still wooden frames with ropes hanging from them and cloths covering the stalls in many places. The ugliness is still there,” said the resident. It remains to be seen how long the traders will refrain from using plastic sheets.
Debraj Ghosh, a hawker union leader, said many hawkers were unhappy that the stalls now did not have any covering on the sides and at the back. “They fear that dust from the road will destroy the clothes and other items. During the monsoon, the wares could get drenched. We will be talking to the KMC to find out whether any modifications could be made,” Ghosh said.
Kumar admitted that the stalls could get wet during rain. The KMC, he said, will ask advertising agencies whether they are interested to put up advertisements if the rear of the stalls is covered.
“We can have LED ad space that will generate revenue. If the space is designed well, it will make the place look better,” he said.