Traders at the Jatrabari wholesale kitchen market are running business directly on the highway, narrowing a vital thoroughfare and creating significant challenges for pedestrians and vehicles. A visit to the area by the UNB correspondent reveals a chaotic scene where vehicles transporting vegetables frequently load and unload on the road from midnight onwards. Private cars remain parked on much of the highway throughout the day, aggravating the congestion. In the afternoons, a makeshift wholesale kitchen market operates on the road, blatantly violating traffic regulations. Vegetables and fish are sold here, further contributing to disorder and disruption. For the traders, occupying the road seems to have become the norm. “We operate our businesses with proper permissions. Customers appreciate the convenience of finding us on the roadside and enjoy wholesale rates on essential items,” claimed Rahim, a vegetable trader. Circular Waterway Project around Dhaka fades amid neglect, poor planning But these practices have led to severe traffic problems. Wholesalers distribute goods to other parts of the country from this road, causing consistent gridlock. One wholesaler dismissed concerns, advising reporters to focus on other matters and claiming no complaints had been received about their operations. Regular commuters, however, paint a different picture. Abu Bakr, a private job holder who travels through the area daily, described the experience as “hellish,” particularly during the summer. “Police and the administration witness this chaos every day but remain completely indifferent,” he said. Veteran driver Abdul Halim, who has navigated the Dhaka-Comilla route for over two decades, shared his frustration. “Crossing just half a kilometre in the Jatrabari kitchen market area can take more than 30 minutes due to the mismanagement. Both sides of the road are problematic,” he said. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Dhaka South City Corporation Mizanur Rahman told UNB that they have taken all measures to hand over the shops to the traders as soon as possible. " We have already discussed the issues in our recent meeting. It will be solved immediately to bring the discipline in the kitchen market," he said. The Jatrabari wholesale kitchen market was one of three such facilities built by Dhaka City Corporation to relocate traders from Karwan Bazar. Completed in 2015, the four-storey market on five bighas of land was designed to accommodate 895 shops. BB drafting separate rules for Islamic banking; ‘bankers divided’ But the facility remains largely unused. Traders operating in open spaces have refused to move into the market, citing difficulties in conducting their business from within the building. The abandoned structure has since become a hotspot for drug addicts. The third and fourth floors lie vacant, and parts of the second floor are being used as a garage for rickshaw vans. In the middle of the building, darkness prevails even during daylight hours. Many shop shutters have been stolen, and some units are filled with waste from the fish market. Dhaka’s two city corporations have officially approved 64 kitchen markets across the capital, but countless unauthorised markets continue to spring up, particularly at major intersections. These illegal establishments are often backed by influential local groups. Traders at such markets argue they pay rent comparable to legal markets but remain silent about who receives these payments. Critics point out that much of Bangladesh’s marketing sphere, including kitchen markets, is controlled by powerful financial syndicates. Even in regulated markets, government-imposed pricing is frequently ignored. Customers’ lack of awareness and indifference often make enforcement ineffective, leaving buyers at the mercy of fluctuating prices.

A shop owner in the capital's Banani kitchen market was fined Tk 7,000 on Thursday for not displaying the price lists and storing expired goods. The fine was imposed during a market monitoring drive led by Deputy Secretary Sultana Akhter, aiming to stabilize the prices of essential commodities, according to a release of Press Information Department. Govt permits import of 40.5 million eggs to stabilise market The team reviewed prices for rice, lentils, eggs, flour, green chilies, vegetables, fish, and chicken. According to the release, traders were warned for not displaying, updating, or maintaining accurate price lists. In a separate drive at Hazaribagh tannery market, led by Deputy Secretary Mohammad Zakir Hossain, authorities checked the prices of eggs, onions, green chilies, chicken, rice, and other essentials. Businesses were urged to ensure accurate and updated price lists were clearly displayed.

The government has directed the authorities concerned to take necessary steps to close shopping malls and kitchen markets by 8 pm to save electricity and energy in the current climate of continuous rise in global energy price hikes. A letter, signed by Ahsan Kibria Siddiqui, director-general of the Prime Minister's Office (Administration) on Thursday, said that the Premier has instructed to take necessary steps to ensure that shops, shopping malls, kitchen markets, etc. are not kept open after 8 pm with the provisions of Section 114 of Bangladesh Labor Act, 2006. The Prime Minister's Office has sent a letter to the concerned to ensure proper implementation of this directive. Also read: Hasina cancels PMO’s vehicle procurement plan, diverts fund to public healthcare

A fire swept through a kitchen market on Saturday morning gutting 30 shops in Vatiari union of Sitakunda upazila in Chattogram. The locals called Kumira Fire Service and Naval Fire Service immediately after the fire broke out around 7am at Uttar Bazar area. Also read: Fire guts 70 shops in Patuakhali New Market Station Officer of Kumira Fire service said a total of 30 small and big shops were destroyed before the blaze was brought under control. “The actual amount of losses or the origin of the fire couldn’t be known immediately. An investigation is underway,” he said. However, the local traders claimed they incurred losses of around Tk 50 lakh. Also read: Slum in Chattogram city catches fire

A woman has alleged that she was kidnapped and raped by three men in the capital's Pallabi area last week. However, police are yet to lodge an FIR in connection with the complaint. The alleged crime occurred around 5pm on Tuesday, when the woman was passing through the Mirpur-11 kitchen market area. According to the woman, a resident of Mirpur, two men sprayed some liquid on her face and forcibly took her to a nearby house, where another man joined them. READ: 31-yr-old raped by three in Sylhet Later, the trio took turns to rape her. After the alleged crime, the three had threatened to kill the woman if she revealed her ordeal to anyone. Initially the woman chose not to tell her family members about the rape due to the fear and stigma surrounding sexual violence in the society. Later she confided in her husband. When contacted, the officer-in-charge of the Pallabi police station, Parvez Hossain, told UNB that the woman had come to the police station late on Tuesday evening.  "At the time, she told that she was kidnapped by two men, but didn't mention about the rape. On Friday, she visited the police station again and alleged that she was raped too," the OC said. READ: Rape attempt on Pori Moni: Boat Club expels Nasir from EC When asked why no FIR has been lodged yet, the officer responded: "We are probing the complaint." Bangladesh's rape epidemic Sexual assaults on women continue unabated in Bangladesh, despite the government introducing death penalty for rapes last year. Earlier last month, a police headquarters report said that 26,695 rape cases were filed across the country in the past five years. Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) data shows that 1,018 children were raped last year alone, but only 683 police cases had been filed. Also, 116 survivors were six years old or below. Overall, 1,627 rape cases were reported last year and 53 of the women were killed by the perpetrators while 14 took their own lives, as per the data. However, ASK's data is just the tip of the iceberg, according to aid agencies, who report that most women are too afraid to report rape. In October 2020, the country was rocked by protests after a woman was allegedly attacked and raped in Noakhali. READ: Chargesheet filed against 2 leaders of quota movement in DU student's rape case; Nur exempted In November last year, Bangladesh introduced capital punishment for rape, following days of protests against sexual violence against women in several cities across the country. But human rights organisations say the move will not solve the country's rape crisis, as the survivors of the heinous crime are often stigmatised in the society.

The prices of different essentials including vegetables jumped sharply in the capital as supply chains have been disrupted due to heavy rain and recent flood across the country.

Kawran Bazar, the largest kitchen market in Dhaka, maintains its old bustling character amid the coronavirus outbreak in the country, with people too engrossed in buying groceries to bother about the virus.  

Residents of the capital visited Kawran Bazar, the largest kitchen market of Dhaka, for buying groceries despite increasing rate of coronavirus infection in the country.

As it appears to be a daunting task to prevent overcrowding of shoppers in kitchen markets amid the alarming rise in coronavirus infection, health and urban experts suggested reshaping the kitchen markets immediately so that the city dwellers can collect their essentials avoiding mass gatherings.