Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) conducted an eviction drive against street vendors in Bhangagarh located along the roads of the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) on March 8, 2022.
The following day, on March 9, around 7 p.m., a man attempted suicide by jumping off the Saraighat bridge.
The man has been identified as Bipul Kumar, one of the vendors whose shop was vandalised the day before by the GMC in Bhagagarh.
Bipul, also known as Lambu, did not attempt suicide alone, but brought along his two daughters, the elder of whom was five years old and the younger only three. Fortunately, the trio was rescued by police before they could take the extreme step.
“The hotel was our main source of income. The business has been low in the past two years due to the pandemic. He could not admit his kids to school due to insufficient earnings. We haven’t paid house rent for the past two years, it’s Rs 6,000 per month. We are already going through a lot. The recent incident shook us all and now we are not allowing him (Lambu) to go outside to prevent any such suicidal attempt,” Lambu’s younger brother revealed to G Plus.
While most other vendors were back in business the day after the eviction, Lambu’s shop remains closed. For one thing, because of his mental state, and for another, because GMC officials had seized all of his shop’s belongings.
According to his neighbouring vendors, Lambu was devastated by the eviction. He’ll probably have to buy everything all over again or pay a hefty sum to get his goods back from GMC.
