Traders break open sealed locks of shops

Charanjit Singh Teja

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, December 7

A day after sealing the 50 shops and establishments on the inner ring road around the walled city, a few commercial establishments opened their shutters by breaking the seals on Friday.

However, a majority of the tenets in shops, commercial establishments and owners of residential buildings are raising the voice against the move of corporation but did not break the seals.

Some of the commercial establishments, which don’t have the door on the rear street, have decided to construct the gate on back.

Employees of Bank of Baroda, which was sealed on Thursday, said they would shift the door on the road parallel to the ring road. Most of the properties have two entry gates on the both parallel roads. The residents alleged that action of the MC was partial as they did not seal the Police Station D-Division, which also constructed by breaking the wall in 2001.

The MC had developed a green belt alongside the historic wall years back. The walls of green belt are still intact however residents had constructed the small doors by breaking the historic wall. The MC has sealed all theses gates on Thursday from Lohgarh Gate to Lahori Gate.

Now the MC has major challenge to remove the permanent encroachments alongside the 200-year-old historic wall from Hall Bazaar to Lohgarh Gate. T

he original wall still exists from Hall Bazaar to Lohgarh gate but the permanent kiosks covered it.

Sushant Bahtia, Estate Officer, MC, said the MC Commissioner, Sonali Giri, warned the shop tenants and owners to not break the seal. Otherwise strict action would be taken”.