By Christina Low

The Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) enforcement officers launched a blitz yesterday morning to clear the illegal stalls operated by foreigners on the pavements along Jalan Palong at Taman Miharja in Cheras.

The swift action came after StarMetro highlighted the level of cleanliness in the area.

The residents had complained that they were upset with the hawkers for dumping rubbish and food scraps into the monsoon drain when cleaning up their stalls.

They said most of the stalls were operated by foreigners who were not bothered to abide by the guidelines for hawkers given by the DBKL.

According to the DBKL officer in charge of the operation, notices had been issued to the hawkers but none of them bothered to move out.

DBKL enforcement officers carrying out items from a stall

Most of the stall operators were caught unawares by the DBKL operation.

Many were busy preparing food and drinks for customers while several others had just begun opening their stalls, some of which had been turned into salons and offices equipped with computers and air conditioners.

The enforcement officers had to knock on each door to ensure no one was asleep in their stalls before tearing them down.

The officers also assisted the hawkers in removing their goods before the bulldozers moved in.

About 30 illegal structures along Jalan Palong were demolished. However, those owned and operated by locals were left untouched.

"We were only instructed to clear the stalls operated by the foreigners. We will deal with the locals in another operation," an officer said.

Besides the DBKL, the police force, officers from Tenaga Nasional Berhad and Syabas were also part of the operation.

There was no resistence or any untoward incidents during the operation.