The residents of the twin cities are facing a number of problems as curfew clamped in G-6 Sector due to Lal Masjid imbroglio is making people's life very miserable. Talking to the Business Recorder, people belonging to different walks of life said that they are undergoing metal agony as well as financial problems.
The curfew has been imposed for the last seven days and the people, who used to travel by local transport, are facing difficulties as the vans have changed their routes. "I live in Sadiqabad (Rawalpindi) but am working in Polyclinic as a male nurse. Before the imposition of curfew, I used to travel by local van, which dropped me in front of the hospital. But since the imposition of curfew, the local vans have changed their routes and now it drops me at China Chowk," Usman Rafiq, a passenger, said while pointing out the troubles he was facing just because of curfew.
"You can easily imagine how difficult it is to walk in scorching heat from China Chowk to Polyclinic", he added. Some local van drivers have carved their own routes and most of the passengers are ignorant of these self-made routes.
A van driver told this scribe, "I don't know where to go because the traffic police have allotted us new routes after the imposition of curfew. I admit that the local passengers are facing problems but we ourselves are having difficulties as number of passengers has reduced. We are spending a lot and getting a less amount in return facing a loss of Rs 200-300 daily."
Along with transporters, poor people like vendors are also confronting problems as they have earned nothing for the last seven days. "The prolonged curfew has added to our problems. I am a vendor and sell vegetables and fruits in Aabpara. I don't know from where to manage money in order to feed my children.
I have earned nothing for the last sevens day. You cannot feel how feeble I feel myself when my children sleep at night without eating to their full. My children are going to starve if the curfew lasts long," Hashmat Khan, a helpless man, said while having tears in his eyes.