HYDERABAD, Jan 14: The business community of the city has refused to obey government decision to close down markets by 7:30 evening arguing that it is impossible to close shops that early.

All the business centres and shops at Gul Centre, Cantt Shopping Centre, Mobile Markets, Tilak Incline, Al- Raheem Shopping Centre, Resham Bazaar, Chhotki Ghitti, Electronics Market, Qasimabad and Latifabad remain open till midnight as usual.

The federal caretaker government has ordered closure of all the markets and shopping centres by 7:30 pm to conserve energy but the businessmen complained that the decision had been taken without consulting them.

They said that the customers usually visited bazaars from evening to midnight and they would be ruined if they followed government decision.

They warned if the government tried to close bazaars by force they would protest. Hesco was already carrying out load-shedding for four to six hours daily causing them huge losses, they said.

Akram Arain, vice-president of the Hyderabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Saleem Vohra, president of Anjuman Tajeran and leaders of a number of trade bodies, said that the decision had been taken without consulting them. It would be impossible to close down shops during evening hours when the business barely started picking up, they said.—PPI