Rawalpindi [Pakistan], October 31 : The Rawalpindi Cantonment Board (RCB) Anjuman-e-Tajran protested against the conversion of Bank Road to a pedestrian-only road by the board and the imposition of a tiered parking fee at Potohar Parking-1 on Thursday, Dawn reported.
As reported by Dawn, the businesspeople called these measures "anti-business", affecting the local commerce in the region.
The Anjuman Tajran Cantt has demonstrated its agitation against the imposition of a tiered parking fee at Potohar Parking-1 as they will be charged Pakistani Rupees (PKR) 50 for the first hour and PKR 100 for the next hour. They will be charged PKR 50 for each hour, as per Dawn's reports.
The Rawalpindi Cantonment Board has implemented these measures in the wake of an underground cabling and beautification project of PKR 830 million in the Saddar Commercial area which includes Bank Road, Kashmir Road, King Road, Haidar Road and Mall Road.
According to Dawn, the businesspeople have decided to shut down the shops and also to return the keys to the board.
A spokesperson of the business association said, "These decisions were not made with input from the project's string committee." He further stated that these moves were subversive to local traders and businessmen.
Zafar Qadri, the General Secretary of Anjuman-e-Tajran Rawalpindi Cantt, has announced an upcoming press conference to discuss further actions against the board's measures. He expressed his frustration and said that the businessmen are deeply concerned about the measures taken by the board.
The ongoing tension between the board and traders highlights the commercial struggle in Rawalpindi.
In defence of the measures, RCB Assistant Secretary Rashid Saqib explained that the road closures would be implemented in phases to facilitate construction. He assured that the proposal for a pedestrian zone on Bank Road would be presented to cantonment officials for review before any final decisions are made, Dawn reported.
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