Rains hit trading activity in Jodia Bazar

Heavy rains and overflowing sewerage lines have disturbed the entire trading activity in Jodia Bazar and the city government has failed to clean roads, traders of different sections told Business Recorder on Friday.
The businessmen running their own shops and businesses in the main bazaar said that they could not walk to reach their offices and markets due to choked sewerage lines and knee-deep rainwater on the streets. They said that the Jodia Bazar, one of the oldest wholesale markets, was contributing huge taxes to the government but in return the authorities did not pay attention to solve the problems of traders.
A trader, on condition anonymity, said roads of the Jodia Bazar had been constructed three times only in the papers, as practically situation is obvious.
"I can not sit in my office due to bad smell, as sewerage lines are overflowing in the street", a trader said while giving his reaction. He also slammed the different trade associations, which are not working for the improvement of the Jodia Bazar.
Another trader said that the Mumbai Jodia Bazar and Karachi Jodia Bazar had the same problems but in India, the Mumbai administration solves traders problems on priority basis, especially during rains. But here in Karachi, he said that despite the fact that the CDGK office is near to the Jodia Bazaar the authorities were reluctant to remove grievances of traders.
Apart from this, he said "whenever we open a shutter of our shops we always find no electricity, especially during rainy season. In this situation how it could be possible for traders to keep their business continue". He further said, "I cannot receive faxes and emails timely from the different foreign as well as local buyers due to load shedding."
He said traders neither could take cash nor submit cheques because the computer system in banks is not working properly due to frequent and prolong power failures.
More than 300 jewellery shops, situated adjacent to the Judia Bazar are also facing similar problems. No streetlights are available at different roads of the Bazar.
Replaying to a question about the law and order situation, a shopkeeper said the mobile phone snatching has become a routine and the police have failed to give protection to the traders. Hence, he said many traders had hired private security guards for the safety of their business as well as their lives.