‘Lorong TAR pasar malam will shift to Jalan TAR for Ramadan’
KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala Lumpur City Hall has given 150 pasar malam traders in Lorong Tuanku Abdul Rahman (TAR) the green light to operate throughout Ramadan and has shifted them to Jalan TAR to facilitate compliance with new-norm requirements.
Lorong TAR Hawkers and Traders’ Association president Azkhalim Suradi said he received a letter allowing the night market traders to resume their weekly operations on Saturday.
However, the approval was on condition that they agree to allow the Aidilfitri bazaar to take over their place.
The authorities planned to close a 1km stretch from Jalan Esfahan to Jalan Melayu to make way for the bazaar.
The move would be similar to what it had done for the weekend pasar malam in 2019. Azkhalim said it would take place only on Saturdays instead of throughout the weekend.
City Hall sources confirmed the temporary relocation directive for traders for Ramadan. It was expected to issue a statement on the matter soon.
Azkhalim, who went on a walkabout with City Hall technical officers on Wednesday, said there would be three entry points and exit points for the Aidilfitri bazaar, which will comprise 208 stalls, and two entry and exit points for the pasar malam.
“Visitors can enter the bazaar from Campbell Complex and near Semua House, among others. An iron gate will ensure no one can trespass without coming in through the designated entrances and scanning using the MySejahtera app.
“Our entrances will include one at Jalan Esfahan. One of the exits is at Jalan Bunus 6 near Semua House. Our parameter will be cordoned off by redtape.”
He said up to 400 people would be allowed to enter either markets at any one time.
This did not include the number of people manning each stall, which had been capped to a maximum of two people at both facilities, he added.
On grouses by the Masjid India Business Association (MIBA) and potential brickbats from traders on Jalan TAR, Azkhalim said night market traders doing business in front of their shops would lead to more business for them.
“It’s symbiotic. They will walk around the night market and then they will go into shops because our weather is hot.”
MIBA had objected to the relocation of the Ramadan bazaar from Jalan Raja to Lorong TAR due to fears of Covid-19 clusters arising in the area and affecting their businesses following movement controls since last year.
Some traders in Jalan TAR had also told the New Straits Times that they were against the night market being relocated on the main artery as road closures and congestion would affect their businesses during Ramadan, which is their peak period.
Public health specialist Dr Safiya Amaran said rigorous monitoring, strict enforcement of standard operating procedures (SOP) and restricting the number of people at the bazaar and night market would ensure that transmission rates remained low.
She said theoretically, Covid-19 would likely linger and thrive in closed spaces compared with open-air spaces.
“But I don’t know how the SOP is going to be implemented, monitored and enforced on the ground,” said the Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin academician.
She urged the authorities to keep an eye out for “chinmaskers”, or people who pulled down their face mask to only cover their chin.
She said traders and visitors had a tendency to do so.
In 2019, the bazaar in Lorong TAR, which had thrived in Masjid India since the 1980s, was relocated to Jalan Raja to broker a truce over the authorities’ proposal to close the 1km stretch on Jalan TAR over the weekend in order to resolve traffic congestion in the city and turn the place into a pedestrian mall.