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Horror inside subways

Plight of pedestrians mounts as addicts, vagabonds rule city underpasses

Amena Khatun
Though the subways of Dhaka city are meant to facilitate pedestrians, they have instead emerged as shelter for drug addicts and vagabonds to the sufferings of city dwellers.
The poor condition of these old structures also discourages people from using them.
Pedestrians blame Dhaka City Corporation’s utter negligence and irresponsibility in maintaining these underpasses.
Taking advantage of this situation, some people now also use these places for illicit activities. During power cuts people are even afraid to use them as rampant muggings occur in the darkness. Girls especially complain of teasing when they use the underground passes.
Rainwater gets logged in the subways during
the monsoon, as there is no drainage. People also dump wastes here and the homeless use them for excretion. As a result the passages are dirty and full of germs.
The story is the same in all the underpasses -- at Dhalpur, Karwan Bazar, Gabtoli, and Gulistan. Among them, only the Gulistan underpass is in a good condition.
The Dhalpur underpass at Jatrabari is home to drug addicts and security guards do nothing to keep them away.
"I have been living here for two years but haven’t seen any guards," said Harun, one of the addicts.
Ruma, a student of Kazi Nazrul Islam College, has to use the subway at least twice a day but she never does this alone as these
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addicts often mug people and tease female pedestrians.
The state of Karwan Bazar underpass is worse. It remains in knee-deep water during the rainy season. The stench of the stagnant water keeps people away from the subway.
Pedestrians themselves leave wastes here that further contaminate the environment. Others have set up small businesses here, selling fruits, clothes and plastic items.
Brishti, a20-year-old homeless girl, has been living in the Karwan Bazar subway for four years now. She told The Daily Star that the police don't evict people who live here unless high ranked officials or ministers are to pass through the area.
The Gabtoli underpass also remains dirty round the year.
Jamila Begum, a sweeper working here, said," I clean the place every day but beggars and vagabonds make it dirty again. They even excrete here and the security guard does nothing to stop these activities."
Since thunderstorm damaged the tin-roofof this underpass seven months ago, rainwater seeps in, and as a result even light rainfalls lead to water logging, said Joshan Ali, deputy manager of Dhaka City Corporation, Gabtoli zone.
"We have reported the authorities concerned several times but they have done nothingso far," hesaid.
Ahmed Shah, executive engineer of DCC Zone-6, said steps are underway to rectify these problems.
"We have already taken initiatives to make Karwan Bazar underpass more use-able. It will take around two months to complete the work," hesaid.
"We also have a plan to arrange alternate power supply during load shedding."
Ahmed Shah said that the homeless people are not evicted on humanitarian grounds, as they have nowhere else to go.