A 10-metre temporary hawker-free zone around Charminar has added new charm to the 425-year-old monument for tourists and visitors in Hyderabad.
As work is in progress for laying tiles as part of the pedestrianisation project, barricades have been erected around the monument, except on the western side. This barricading has come as a bonanza to tourists and visitors who are able to get closer to the monument and soak in the ambience without having to dodge pesky hawkers, beggars and speeding vehicles. Though it is a work in progress, the smooth surface has also added to the pleasant experience for tourists.
Carriageway curtailed
Outside the barricades, it is the same old chaos with hawkers pushing plastic beads on the faces of tourists or trying to peddle other knick-knacks and trinkets. “This is not a business of our choice. We might appear laughing, sharing jokes while standing but this is hard work. At the end of the day we get between ₹ 400 or ₹ 500 depending on the sales. Sometimes, when business is dull we get abused by our seth ,” says Qayoom, who was selling fancy ear-studs for women.
There are hundreds of other hawkers like him who line the streets from Lad Bazaar to Charminar, from Gulzar Houz to the four arches of Charkaman.
While tourists are having a better experience, for commuters it is a bitter experience navigating the single lane road between Charminar and Government Nizamia General Hospital. Much of the road is occupied by fruit vendors on the eastern side of the monument.
Traffic-free zone
Though the Charminar Pedestrianisation Project began in 2007, some urgency was added only recently when Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao stepped into the picture.
In November, the Chief Minister announced that the area around Charminar will be developed on the lines of the traffic-free zone around Amritsar’s Golden Temple. The aim of the project is to make people spend more time in the area with the creation of rest areas, public amenities and parking facilities.
“Creation of a buffer zone is one part of the CPP and nearly 25% of the work has been completed. The total cost of the work is ₹ 5.3 crore. There are no takers for work on the pedestrianisation of the road towards Mecca Masjid as contractors are wary as it is tough work,” said a Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation official supervising the work.
