New stalls for hawkers at Gariahat to have space for advertisements

Kolkata: The new stalls that will be handed over to affected hawkers at Gariahat, will have space for advertisements at the back. The new concept was floated by Mayor Firhad Hakim, at a meeting with the hawkers' organisation on Tuesday.

"The stalls will have an attractive look, shaped like a square box. All 30 garment stalls that will come up will have space for advertisements. The lighting will be in a manner so that the advertisements can be seen from a distance," said Member, Mayor-in-Council (Central Store) Tarak Singh.

According to a senior official of KMC, the stalls will initially have the image of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, with the message that the government is with the hawkers (Hawker Der Sathe, Hawker Der Pashe).

"We will be welcoming advertisements from private companies, which will add to the revenue of the civic body. This is the reason why we are designing the stalls in an attractive manner," the official added.

The Central Store is working on structuring the stalls in consultation with the hawkers. It has been decided that among the 30 stalls which will come up, seven will measure 6x3 feet while 23 will be 6x4 feet.

It may be mentioned that the hawkers at Gariahat were recently shown a model 6x4 feet stall but the hawkers wanted some alterations. The civic body has already prepared an artist's impression of the stall but the design has not been completely finalised yet. "We have also planned a screen-like cover on top of the stall made of non-flammable material, so that customers face little difficulty in purchasing things even during the monsoon," Singh said.

A group of architects that the civic body has consulted, suggested that the stalls should not block the signboards of the permanent shops. After every 10 stalls, there will be a small exit. The exits will facilitate air circulation and enable hawkers and others to flee if there is an emergency.

It may be recalled that a massive fire at Gariahat on January 20 had damaged 30 stalls.