PUNE, NOV 8: Hawkers who were thrown out of M G Road and sent packing to Fashion Street may yet see their dreams of owning shops come true soon. Originally known for its open green spaces and spacious bungalows, the Pune Cantonment could well get a new look with a spate of commercial complexes set to come up at various locations.The Pune Cantonment Board (PCB) has decided to erect a commercial complex at the Fashion Street located off Gen Thimayya Road and accommodate hawkers there. Not just this, the cantonment board has also decided to accommodate 96 hawkers in dispute who were originally offered space at Abaji Maidan. Should this project take off, the hawkers who currently operate from cramped spaces with just an asbestos sheet for a covering can hope for attractive shops. This move could also change the character of the Fashion Street which was originally meant for hawkers who previously hawked wares from the pavements of M G Road at affordable prices suiting the middle class pockets.Yet another building in the same plot is also expected to be used for commercial purposes although the original sanction had been granted for a library. The cantonment board had recently sent a notice to the project owners of the Siddhartha Mofat Vachanalaya under Section 185 of the Cantonments' Act of 1924 for violating the revised building plans. The board had received an application from Bapu Ganla, president of the Siddhartha Mofat Vachnalaya for the composition of the unauthorised construction and decided to conduct a site inspection following observations that there appeared to be more commercial activities than the functioning of the library.The entire plot consisting of 80,000 sq feet now houses the hawkers has a pay and park zone and also the building for the library. The shifting of hawkers who had ruled the pavements of M G Road had always been a contentious issue with the cantonment board. Although the issue had been in cold storage for years, things hotted up following a court decision in the favour of the cantonment.The board has also decided to construct commercial complexes at Dhobi Ghat on Shankarshet Road, Ghorpadi and the old office of the cantonment board at 35, M G Road. All the commercial complexes are expected to be constructed on a self-financing basis except the project of the Siddhartha Mofat Vachanalaya. All the three projects have been included under the board's development plan for the next five years.
