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Businesses bear the brunt of it

Sohel Parvez
The opposition grand rally at Nayapaltan and few public transport on the city streets took a heavy toll on the trade and business yesterday.
Salesmen at markets and shopping malls passed an idle day amid very minimal turnout of customers.
Transactions in commercial banks were low. Many officials and staff at private firms could not join their offices as only a few vehicles plied the streets.
The distributors of consumer goods suspended their supplies fearing trouble.
"It's a bad day today (yesterday]. I am yet to sell out my vegetables that I had bought the day before," said a vegetable vendor at New Market kitchen market adding, he had not yet recouped his investment.
Panic gripped the retailers in the area following a clash on Elephant Road between the activists of Awami League
and BNP in the afternoon.
Witnesses said the AL men equipped with sticks, rods and machetes brought out a procession on the road and chased the opposition activists away.
The retailers at Dhanmondi Hawkers Market, Goushia Market and Elephant Road markets pulled down their shutters instantly.
"All the hopes for good sales are gone now," said salesman Abdur Rahim at a cloth store at Dhanmondi Hawkers Market.
Ali Ahmed, a vegetable trader at Hatirpool kitchen market, said his sales had slumped since Sunday. "We had some buyers last night [Sunday night), but today there are only a few. Sales even on a hartal day are much higher."
People are afraid to come out of their houses, he noted.
The city's major shopping malls including Bashundhara City also saw a few customers.
"I had no option but to come here and buy some items urgently, ' said Asaduzzaman Emon. His baby is admitted to Square Hospital.
"It's an unusual environment That's why our product distribution was almost suspended today (yesterday)," said an official of Pran-RFL Group, a leading agroindustrial company, seeking to remain unnamed.
Mohammad Kamal Hossain, manager of a grocery store at Karwan Bazar, said there has been no supply of consumer goods such as edible oil and flour since Sunday.
The supply of vegetables from the northern and northwestern districts was disrupted for the second straight day yesterday, mentioned Abdul Jalil, owner of a vegetable wholesale depot in the market.
He mentioned that truckers do not want to come to Dhaka due to obstacles along the way and risk of hijacking on the highways.
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