Islamabad's H-9 and G-6 weekly bazaars closed indefinitely over fire safety

The H-9 and G-6 weekly bazaars in Islamabad are closed from today, Friday 16 October 2026, with no reopening date. The Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) has shut both markets until they meet fire safety requirements and get clearance from the Capital Development Authority's emergency services, ARY News reported. If you do your weekly fruit, vegetable and grocery shopping at the H-9 Sunday bazaar or the G-6 market, plan another market for this weekend.

What the order says

The notification was issued by the Directorate of Municipal Administration with the approval of the MCI's Chief Officer, according to ProPakistani, which cited 24 News. Its main points:

• Markets: H-9 weekly bazaar and G-6 weekly bazaar.
• From: 16 October 2026.
• Until: every required fire prevention measure is in place and Capital Emergency Services, part of the CDA, issues a fire safety clearance.
• Reopening date: none announced.

ARY said the directorate had asked the CDA's Director General of Emergency Services to inspect both sites and hoped for an early response.

Why now

The H-9 bazaar is Islamabad's biggest weekly market. ProPakistani reported that a fire broke out there on a recent Wednesday, apparently during welding work while stallholders were fitting shutter gates, and destroyed 133 of its 2,800 stalls; the exact cause has not been confirmed. ARY added that safety instructions issued after a major fire at the H-9 market in June had not been fully carried out.

The authorities also plan to make the fire station at the H-9 Sunday bazaar operational within a week and to deal with risks from electricity connections and backup power systems at the market, ProPakistani said.

Not the first closure this autumn

This is the second fire safety shutdown of the capital's weekly markets in six weeks. On 1 September the MCI closed the H-9, G-6 and G-10 bazaars on 1, 2, 4 and 6 September for breaking fire safety rules, ProPakistani reported at the time, with only fruit and vegetable sellers at H-9 allowed to trade on 1 September. The G-10 market is not named in the new order.

What it means for shoppers and stallholders

• Shoppers: the weekly bazaars are where many Islamabad and Rawalpindi families buy vegetables, fruit, clothes and household goods below shop prices. With H-9 and G-6 shut, expect busier conditions at the remaining markets and at neighbourhood shops. Our inflation data page tracks how food prices are moving nationally.
• Stallholders: they cannot trade at either site until the CDA clearance is granted. Neither report says whether the MCI will offer stallholders another site in the meantime.
• Check before you go: the order is open-ended, so a reopening will depend on the CDA inspection. We will update this story when the MCI announces a date.