"Bhai mall nahi hey. Do chaar rooz lagen gay. Jaldi karo time zaya na karo (We don't have stocks. You have to wait two to four days. Please do it fast and don't waste my time)," Haroon Agar was talking to a customer, when I entered his office in Jodia Bazaar, the country's oldest and largest wholesale market. It was about 11:30am and Agar, who deals in commodities, chemicals and others items, was looking very busy as was juggling a large number of buyers, who were in his office to make deals.
This was surprising as for the last few years, many customers have been avoiding the old city areas because of rampant crimes, extortions, kidnapping, and targeted killings. But that was before the Karachi Operation, an official crackdown by law enforcement agencies with Sindh Rangers in commanding role, on extortion, theft and other crimes in the small, crowded alleys of Jodia Bazaar where donkey carts dodge traders who spread their detergents and other daily use items on the ground outside shops. Everyone in the downtown area seems relieved as the law enforcement agencies appear to have succeeded in subduing many of the outlaws.
With more than 40,000 venders and billions of rupees turnover daily, the old city area features wholesale markets for everything from medicine and toys to gold and stationery. Some merchants deal in commodities, chemicals, textiles and plastic. But since 2010, traders faced tough time as extortion and kidnappings surged at geometrical proportion.
A large number of venders shutdown or shifted their business to other cities. As the continuous actions by law enforcers against the outlaws yielded positive results, venders are sounding confident about their prospects and trade activities in the market is picking up. Jodia Bazaar is again crowded with customers.
"At present, the law and order situation is much better than previous year and our customers are back thanks to Karachi Operation," said Haroon Agar, a former president of Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), while talking to this correspondent.
His brother shifted his business to the upscale Clifton area after receiving extortion chits for 10th times in Jodia Bazaar. However, Agar said, the situation has now changed and he came back last week because there is no threat in this area.
Another visible sign of progress in the ongoing targeted action is the large number of customers, who are in his office for business deals. During the last few years, KCCI has actively supported the efforts of law enforcement agencies to return normalcy to the Jodia Bazaar and other markets in south Karachi. KCCI provided 13 vans and 50 motorbikes to the police to improve security in the area, Agar said.
Though there is marked improvement, Agar is not yet completely satisfied with the police department's efforts. Authorities had promised to deploy additional 300 police personnel in the city's downtown markets but so far, they have provided only 70 additional officers to control the law and order situation, he said. Still, Agar is optimistic that things will continue to improve because of additional measures taken by the provincial and federal governments.
Abdul Samad Budhani, a medicine dealer, also endorsed Haroon Agar and said that now they can freely move in Jodia Bazaar for business. This area was blacklisted since 2011 for trading activities, however after a successful operation against miscreants, it is now peaceful and customers are back, he added.
Samad urged deployment of law enforcement personals in the area on regular basis to ensure peace in the city's downtown area. He thanked Governor Sindh Dr Ishhratul Ibad Khan, former DG Rangers Major General Rizwan Akhtar and specially mentioned the name of Lieutenant Colonel Ilyas Afghana, who conducted operation in District South for their efforts to ensure peaceful environment in Jodia Bazaar and adjoining markets.
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