Old City opens up for Id-ul-Fitr
Business activity in market areas to end at 8.30 pm due to curfew
As Id-ul-Fitr festivities draw closer, shopping centres in the Old City have opened their gates to welcome the growing number of people every day — and conduct their business activities till
8.30 pm as curfew is imposed at 9 pm. Id-u-Fitr may probably fall on May
14, leaving just about 10 days for shopping amid reduced hours.
People are thronging markets in the Old City, right from Pathergatti, Madina Circle, Patel Market, Lad Bazaar, Khilwat, Shah Ali Banda and adjoining areas. With a large number of people throng markets to purchase items, traffic jams are the order of the day. Footpath markets on Pathergatti and Charminar stretch have come up. In most of those footpaths and at the hawkers' markets, the Id shopping has got momentum.
A large number of Hyderabadis buy clothes, shoes, children’s garments, jewellery, furnishing articles and curtains ahead of the Id celebrations. Demand for sheer khurma kits, perfumes, cosmetics and decorative items also remains high.
Traditionally,
● A LARGE number of Hyderabadis buy clothes, shoes, children’s garments, jewellery, furnishing articles and curtains ahead of the Id celebrations.
Hyderabad experiences a major shopping frenzy in the last 10 days of Ramzan. These commercial activities culminate hours before the Id prayer. The megacity is home to a crore people who are known for their passion for shopping. A large number of nonMuslims come up to pick new arrivals. On this mega event, an average buyer normally spends a minimum of `10,000 on shopping.
This year, cloth merchants are finding fewer customers compared to previous times as this time people are not in a mood to purchase unstitched fabrics. They may opt for ready-made garments, considering the prevailing pandemic situation.
Mohammed Imtiaz Sayani of DFR Exclusive, Nayapul, said people from the districts were not travelling to the city due to the curfew at night. Most people thronging the markets are from the city.
Mohammed Akram of
Akram Textiles, Moosabowli, said Muslim usually purchase garments three to four for each in Ramzan. Now they are purchasing one or two garments.
Charminar inspector B. Guru Naidu said the crowd in the market increased from Monday. “We have beefed up surveillance and deployed teams consisting of police mufti to apprehend pickpockets and attention diversion gangs,” Naidu said.
He said there were no major cases reported until now. “We will set up public address systems and flexes of older offenders at all vulnerable spots to alert citizens,” he said.