Drive against roadside cabins to continue

KABUL): The Kabul Municipality said on Sunday the operation against encroachments on roads in the capital would continue, but residents feared the campaign against cabins and handcarts would lead to robberies and pick-pocketing.

In December 2011, the Ministry of Interior launched a month-long campaign to remove roadsides cabins, barriers and tainted glasses from vehicles, as well as impound unregistered cars in Kabul and seven other big provinces.

Officials say a large number of barriers have been removed and many unregistered cars seized as part of the drive. On Saturday, the municipality’s cleanliness commission met to review the operation.

“We ask Kabul residents through media outlets not to set up roadside businesses that cause pollution in the city,” the 101st Asmayee Zone police said. It also reminded of a ban on a public display of unlicenced weapons. Violators of the ban will be prosecuted, the police warned.

The police commander for the zone, the Kabul police chief, the intelligence department head, the Wolesi Jirga and the deputy mayor participated in the meeting.

“Hawkers prevented from selling daily-use items in the Deh Afghanan underpass are turning to robberies and pick-pocketing,” Timor Shah, a shopkeeper in the area, told Pajhwok Afghan News.

Shah claimed knowing a number of youth who had resorted to robberies after the removal of their kiosks. “Yesterday, I saw one affected hawker stealing money from people’s pockets close to my shop,” he said.

The pickpocket also fought with the people for some time, breaking the windowpanes of his shop, Shah added, urging the government to let handcart owners and hawkers sell their items in a specific locality.

“If hawkers are not allowed to do business in a particular area, robbers and pick-pocketing would increase,” he warned.

But officials of the 8th police district and municipality said they had allotted five areas for handcart owners.

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