Hyderabad: The Sultan Bazaar Traders Association has threatened to shut all the shops and stage a dharna if the barricades placed by the traffic police are not removed from Koti Maternity Hospital to Badi Chowdi. The association claimed that the barricades, in the middle of the road and along the footpaths were obstructing the movement of vehicles and pedestrians. These were preventing customers from coming to their shops for Diwali shopping, the traders said.
Work on the Metro Rail pillars has been completed but barricades were still in place because machine and material are lying at the site. Shops located close to the pillars face demolition. The association had requested Hyderabad Metro Rail not to demolish the buildings right away as they had stocked their goods for Diwali. While HMR agreed to put off the demolitions, the barricades were kept for safety
Association leader Govind Rathi said, “We inspected the area in the morning and want some sections to be removed so that shops are accessible. A complaint has also been recorded with the traffic police commissioner.”
Additional commissioner of police, traffic, Jitender, has assured traders that the barricades would be removed from areas where the pillar work was completed. A traffic constable in the area said, “There is no traffic discipline here. The barricades helped regulating traffic but they are being removed in select portions due to opposition from traders. The material on the footpath is being cleared.”
