GUJRAT, Dec 13: The anti-encroachment squad of the Gujrat Tehsil Municipal administration, after a long time, dared to enter city’s main market, the Muslim Bazaar, on Thursday and removed some encroachments.

Prior to launching the operation, the TMA had held at least five different meetings with trade bodies of the bazaar besides issuing notices but none of the traders paid any heed to the warnings

The Muislim Bazaar has been plagued by temporary and permanent illegal encroachments for the last many years, and there had been no operation cleanup during the last more than a decade as the administration always feared a strong reaction from traders.

Almost every shopkeeper in the bazaar had rented out front three to four feet space to vendors and earned up to Rs25,000 a month. As this was not enough, push carts carrying fruit, vegetable and garments left no space for shoppers.

Though the TMA team did not touch any concrete encroachment in the bazaar on Thursday, its drive to remove temporary encroachments is being appreciated by the local social circles.

Sources said the administration was cautiously handling the issue to avoid a flare-up.

Gujrat TMA Administrator Farooq Rasheed told Dawn the TMA had planned a complete drive but in phases. He said in the first phase on Thursday, vendors, kiosks and pushcarts were removed.

He said he was planning to send a few vehicles of the TMA to the bazaar on a daily basis so that the encroachers did not return.