The Sunday bazaar — razed to the ground by the DHA on Wednesday — was built by it some seven to eight years ago on a no-profit-no-loss basis.—Fahim Siddiqi / White Star
The Sunday bazaar — razed to the ground by the DHA on Wednesday — was built by it some seven to eight years ago on a no-profit-no-loss basis.—Fahim Siddiqi / White Star

KARACHI: No longer can you find those signs on Khayaban-i-Ittehad guiding you through Phases VI and VII to reach Sunday bazaar in Phase VIII. As DHA residents knew the area well, those signs were for weekend shoppers who did not live in Defence. DHA authorities have blocked all roads leading to their popular bazaar as they clear up the rubble of the shops and stalls they have demolished.

As news about the closure of DHA’s Sunday bazaar broke people went crazy on social media, reminiscing about the years they had been going there for shopping. Some even hoped that the news was not true or this was just a temporary situation.

Also read: DHA Sunday bazaar closed

A rumour also started about this being due to security reasons. But DHA spokesman Major Aurangzeb said their agreement period with the market organisers had ended on Dec 31, 2014 as had the three-month grace period. “See, the market was situated on private plots and the owners of those plots wanted to build their property there but couldn’t as we had not yet developed the sector for construction as yet,” he said, adding that the market organisers had been informed about it and told to vacate it in advance.

Mrs Anjum Vasim, an elderly resident of DHA Phase II, said she couldn’t even imagine life without Sunday bazaar. “Why did they even start such a market here if they planned to end it one day?” she said dejectedly.

Mohsin Ikram, her son, said Sunday bazaar provided great activity for the entire family. “You would see people picking up other family members from their homes to head to the place together on Sundays. You could find everything in one place and security provided by DHA was an added advantage. Bring it back!” he demanded.

Arjumand Amirzada, who doesn’t live in DHA, said she would surely miss her weekly morning visits to Sunday bazaar. “It was a picnic-cum-grocery-shopping expedition for us. We live in Gulshan and there are other weekly markets such as Tuesday bazaar and Friday bazaar in our area, too. But DHA’s Sunday bazaar was different. We’d load baskets in our car trunk, grab the kids and head out. After having a hearty breakfast of halwa-puri on the way, we’d head to the bazaar to pull into any of its parking lots and spend at least until noon there,” she said.

“Not just would we head to the bazaar for our grocery shopping, we’d look around and do so much window shopping, too. You never knew what you’d stumble upon that would be of immense use to you and not very expensive as well,” said Farrukh Sultan, who lives in nearby Phase VI.

“I have bought so many second-hand kitchen utensils from there,” said Zeba Mohsin, a resident North Nazimabad. “They may have been second-hand but looked almost new and they have brass bottoms, not available here. The fellow selling them said foreigners staying in Pakistan for a bit bring them here with them but don’t want to carry the extra weight going back,” she said.

Qutbuddin Khan, a gadget collector and book lover, regretted not having gone there for a few weeks. “I was planning to go but kept cancelling as something or the other came up. Now I feel so bad. I have bought so many volumes worth thousands of rupees for cheap at Sunday bazaar. And I want my gadgets back!” he said.

Meanwhile, several shopkeepers have been complaining of having lost lucrative livelihoods as well as goods they had stored at their stalls. Makhan Zaman, who sold second-hand clothes, said that he had plenty of merchandise stored in his shop that had been ruined. “I have a shop in Gulshan and another at Lighthouse, but I could carry to and back everything to the Sunday bazaar shop every week so I had stored it inside my shop there. But no one cared to inform me when bulldozing the bazaar,” he said. Asked if he didn’t know of the agreement’s lapse, he nodded. “Well, yes, but it’s a big market. I didn’t believe it would be closed so soon. And I had not even imagined that they would bulldoze the place,” he said in a low voice.

Riffat Ali of the Welfare Association of Field Organisers of Weekly Bazaars Karachi said Sunday bazaar, where it was now, was not too old but was a very well-planned market unlike most other weekly markets. “The bazaar at its present came about only seven or eight years ago. Before that it was located near the Misri Shah shrine. Back then it didn’t have the well-planned pathways and sheds, too. Only tents as you must have noticed with the other weekly markets around the city,” he said.

“The sheds with other facilities such as proper parking lots, etc, were a fine idea. The DHA built these for us on a no-profit-no-loss basis. With everything so well-organised, the traders were also happy as it provided them with a reliable means of livelihood in a clean and safe locality.” Asked if they planned to move the market somewhere else at DHA, Mr Ali said they had been informed by DHA that there was no other place as big to relocate the market. “They don’t have space as there is development work going on everywhere, they say. There is another place, Qayyumabad, where there are Friday and Sunday bazaars though under tents. That place is not as spacious, of course, but with no market here anymore, the rush of people is expected to divert there now,” he said.

“Still, we are working on another proposal to DHA to find us smaller places at different venues where we can hold a market on seven different days of the week in order to ease or distribute the pressure. That way the shoppers would be satisfied and the traders will also find a regular livelihood,” he said.

Published in Dawn, April 9th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play

Opinion

Editorial

Judiciary’s SOS
Updated 28 Mar, 2024

Judiciary’s SOS

The ball is now in CJP Isa’s court, and he will feel pressure to take action.
Data protection
28 Mar, 2024

Data protection

WHAT do we want? Data protection laws. When do we want them? Immediately. Without delay, if we are to prevent ...
Selling humans
28 Mar, 2024

Selling humans

HUMAN traders feed off economic distress; they peddle promises of a better life to the impoverished who, mired in...
New terror wave
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

New terror wave

The time has come for decisive government action against militancy.
Development costs
27 Mar, 2024

Development costs

A HEFTY escalation of 30pc in the cost of ongoing federal development schemes is one of the many decisions where the...
Aitchison controversy
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

Aitchison controversy

It is hoped that higher authorities realise that politics and nepotism have no place in schools.