A relatively calm Dhaka
After days of endless violence, parts of Dhaka were relatively calm yesterday, the second day of the ongoing curfew.
Many ventured out of their homes to buy groceries, essentials and restock supplies.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Although the curfew was lifted for two hours, from 3:00pm to 5:00pm, people started coming out early in the morning to finish incomplete business or run errands.
Most of them thronged kitchen markets, grocery stores, or utility offices.
People had to wait in long queues to compete purchases at grocery stores and markets.
A grocery customer, Rubaya Islam, said, "The price of each product was higher than the previous day… Consumers are still willing to pay the extra buck. However, due to dwindling supply, there is no guarantee that the product would be available when a customer reaches the end of the queue. I feel like I am living in a city under siege."
The shopkeepers, however, blamed supply shortage for the price hike.
Md Anwar Hossain, a grocery store owner at Mohammadpur Town Hall market, said, "We could not replenish our stock in the last six days. Many of my fellow shop owners could not even open their shops as their supplies have run out."
"Whenever we open our shop, hundreds of customers come to us and buy whatever they can at whatever the price we ask for. There is no time for bargaining. My stock will also run out in the next two days, if new supplies do not arrive by this time," he added.
Due to the internet shutdown, prepaid consumers who usually recharge their power and gas meter cards either via MFS, such as bKash or Nagad, or recharge vendors, had to wait in long queues instead for several hours at gas and power offices.
This was the scenario in front of DPDC and Titas Gas offices.
Shahriar Khan, a resident of Gopibagh area, said, "My prepaid electricity and prepaid gas will run out of balance soon. If I don't pay the bills today, there will be no electricity and gas in my house tomorrow. As there is no internet connection, I could not pay via apps."
"Defying the curfew, I had to search for DPDC and gas offices for more than two hours and now I'm waiting to pay the bills. I was afraid of being fined or arrested… but I had no other alternatives," he added.
Like the previous day, many could not recharge their phones as well.
On the second day, military men, mounted on trucks and armoured personnel carriers (APCs), were patrolling Dhaka roads. They also stood guard in front of important government buildings.
They frequently stopped pedestrians and vehicles to question them regarding movement during curfew.
In front of Bijay Sarani, police and army stopped several vehicles and motorcycles and asked them to return home.
A police officer on duty, said, "Many people don't know about what they can do and what they cannot do during a curfew. So, when we stop them, we brief them about it and warn them of the consequences."
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