Latest news with #ProtectionofLivelihoodandRegulationofStreetVending)Act
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Paper Plans, Pavement Chaos: NMC Yet To Demarcate 43 Hawking Zones
Nagpur: More than four years after the Covid-19 pandemic forced thousands into street vending for survival, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) failed to legally accommodate even a fraction of the city's street vendors. Out of an estimated 50,000 hawkers in Nagpur, only 1,225 were issued official licences. Shockingly, even among the 3,149 hawkers who were registered and authorised to vote in the formation of the city's Town Vending Committee — a key step under the Street Vendors Act — most remain unlicensed and without any designated space. This stark mismatch exposes the civic body's failure to translate policy into action, leaving thousands vulnerable to eviction while footpaths and roads continue to be overrun in the absence of proper planning. According to official data, the zones with the highest number of licences issued — Laxmi Nagar (176), Dharampeth (250), and Hanuman Nagar (81) — account for only a fraction of the vendors on the ground. Zones like Gandhibagh (109), Sataranjipura (77), Lakadganj (105), and Ashi Nagar (41) reflect similarly dismal figures. Mangalwari zone has seen only 91 licences issued so far. "What makes the situation worse is the stalled implementation of the 2014 Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act," said TVC member and hawkers' union leader Abdul Razzaq Qureshi. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch vàng CFDs với mức chênh lệch giá thấp nhất IC Markets Đăng ký Undo Although 3,149 hawkers across all 10 zones were authorised to cast their votes in the election of Town Vending Committee (TVC) — the statutory body responsible for vendor regulation — the civic body failed to translate this democratic mandate into action, revealed data obtained from the NMC's town vending committee department. Zones like Dhantoli (859 voters), Dharampeth (451), Gandhibagh (427), and Laxmi Nagar (239) had significant participation, underscoring hawkers' eagerness for formal inclusion. The TVC finalised 43 hawking zones and even received approval from the state's urban development department. "Yet, the actual demarcation of these zones remains pending with the NMC's market department. This delay has effectively paralysed the licensing process and deepened the regulatory vacuum," pointed out Qureshi. Instead of rolling out a comprehensive rehabilitation strategy, the NMC has focused its enforcement selectively — particularly on Sitabuldi main road, where hawkers are being repeatedly cleared to maintain a hawker-free zone. In the rest of the city, however, anti-encroachment drives have been inconsistent and largely ineffective. Vendors cleared in the morning are often back by the evening, underlining the futility of force-driven tactics. Activists and urban planners have long warned against this piecemeal approach. "You cannot solve a structural crisis with arbitrary removals. Hawkers are part of the urban economy and need designated space, not persecution," said a local urban researcher. The consequences are dire for both vendors and pedestrians. Footpaths in commercial zones like Dharampeth, Nehru Nagar, and Dhantoli remain choked, while key junctions in Gandhibagh and Sitabuldi are plagued by traffic snarls due to encroachments on carriageways. BOX Street vendors' woes Zones---Hawkers who cast votes—Licences to Hawkers Laxmi Nagar---239---176 Dharampeth---451---250 Hanuman Nagar---174---81 Dhantoli---859---161 Nehru Nagar---233---126 Gandhibagh---427---109 Satranjipura---147---77 Lakadganj---288---105 Ashi Nagar---134---41 Mangalwari---197---91
The Hindu
26-05-2025
- The Hindu
Street vendors knock on GHMC's door against harassment
Street vendors from across the city arrived at the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation's grievance redressal platform 'Prajavani' on Monday, with complaints against removal of pushcarts by the police, and non-implementation of the The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014. The 30 to 40 street vendors who arrived at the GHMC headquarters were representing hawkers from several areas, including Ameerpet, Dilsukhnagar, Kothapet, Saroornagar, Dilsukhnagar, Dammaiguda, Secunderabad and several others. They complained about Operation ROPE (Removal of Obstructive Parking & Encroachments) by the Traffic Police, which has majorly impacted the livelihood of the pushcart vendors. In the name of the operation, the police were removing and destroying the pushcarts, they said. Despite shifting to the lanes and bylanes, the vendors got no respite, and the police continued to impose fines and take away the weights, balances, and commodities as a threat, they said. 'Very recently, they deployed earthmovers to destroy the pushcarts near Saroornagar Rythu Bazar. The action was taken without any notice, and about 80 vendors were affected by it. They have had no work for the past few days. How will they live?' questioned Shree, Director of the Informal Labourers and Workers Federation, who led the delegation along with the National Hawkers Federation. The Street Vendors Act, 2014 exists only on paper, with a large number of vendors having the cards issued by GHMC, but not allotted any vending space, she complained. Two vendors each were selected from various locations of the city, to represent the issue, said. About four to five vendors were allowed inside the Prajavani programme to air their grievance, while all others were made to stay outside. Meanwhile, two children from Moosapet were brought to the Prajavani programme with a request for development of a colony park. Space allocated for park in Anjaneyanagar colony was encroached, and was cleared by the authorities, but ₹50 lakh sanctioned earlier for development of the park has not been released, they said. A total 62 complaints were received at the GHMC headquarters, while 104 complaints came through the programme conducted at the six zonal headquarters, a statement from GHMC informed. Majority were complaints pertaining to the Town Planning department.
The Hindu
15-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Complete street vendor survey in two days: VMC chief
Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) Commissioner H.M. Dhyanachandra has instructed officials to complete the ongoing survey to identify all street vendors in the VMC limits within two days and submit a report. Participating in the survey in the city on Thursday, the commissioner interacted with a vendor and reviewed the 45 points mentioned in the questionnaire in the survey. Upon completion of the survey, all identified street vendors will be issued an identity card. The initiative follows the recent meeting of the 19-member Town Vending Committee held after a gap of three to four years. A decision has been taken to divide the streets into three zones— red, amber, and green zones—as per the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014. The survey, which began on May 13, is the first since 2018. According to information from the VMC, the last survey identified 17,282 street vendors. The present survey aims to identify how many of those vendors are still active and if any new person has come in their place. As many as 286 welfare secretaries are participating in the survey, and three zonal commissioners are closely supervising it. The process is also expected to ease traffic congestion, especially on Besant Road, where shop owners allege that there has been an increase in vendors recently, narrowing the already congested street and leading to traffic disruptions.
The Hindu
04-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Residents in some parts oppose Corporation's new vending zones
Residents in several zones of the Greater Chennai Corporation have started objecting to the first list of vending zones approved by the Corporation Council last week. Anna Nagar West Extension resident R. Kamaraj says that the residents have opposed the decision to create a vending zone on East Main Road of Anna Nagar West Extension. 'The Corporation has already erected a board informing that the road is a vending zone. We have objected. Once permitted, vendors will encroach on more road space. Garbage will accumulate in our area. Half of the road will be encroached upon by vendors. Residents will lose their rights. Students of four schools take this route, and it will become unsafe for them. We request the Corporation to remove the board immediately,' he demands. 'Prevent notification' Ranganathan Garden resident Sridhar has demanded that the ward councillor prevent the notification of Fifteenth Main Road as a vending zone. 'There is a Siva temple in the locality. We do not want vending zones on the stretch that has been peaceful and calm,' he says. After the resolution was passed by the Corporation Council, the civic body has not sent the proposal to the Tamil Nadu government for gazette notification of the vending and non-vending zones. Once the list of vending and non-vending zones is notified by the government, the civic body will allocate space for vendors. The Corporation has started receiving letters from residents' associations, objecting to the list of vending zones in many areas. 'The town vending committee will consider the objections and make a decision. We will remove the roads from the list of vending zones if the residents object,' says an official of the Corporation. The Corporation's designation of 150 vending and 188 non-vending zones, a year after its vending committee was constituted, has drawn criticism for lack of clarity in the zoning norms, interference of political party members, and delays in issuing corrected identity cards to vendors. 'No clarity on unlisted areas' Sandhya Vedullapalli, a civic activist, says that the vending zone list lacks clarity on unlisted areas. Further, in Ward 103, designated vending streets appear insufficient for Anna Nagar's vendors, raising the question whether the process aligns with guidelines under the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, she says. G. Selva of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) points out that in 2021, more than 900 vending zones were identified, but now it is 150. 'In the name of organising, vending zones must not be reduced. Small vendors provide low-income individuals with increased purchasing power, playing a vital role in driving the economic growth. Regional and sub-vending committees must be formed to check on issues related to vending.' Gopalakannan, a vendor on Anna Salai, received a text message that read: 'The Greater Chennai Corporation has requested that street vendors who require any correction in the details on the identity card issued to them take a copy of the issued identity card, mark the required corrections on it, sign it, and submit it along with supporting documents at the respective zonal or divisional office during the special camp to be held from October 19 to 23, 2024.' 'No new cards yet' 'Many submitted the copies for corrections. But I have not received any update on new cards. When we made enquiries, Corporation officials said the cards had not been printed yet,' Gopalakannan adds. S. Kumar, a vendor for 24 years, says the zonal officials have been saying for three months that new cards will be issued in May at the Royapuram Zonal Office. 'Those who were issued new cards were instructed to hand over their old cards. If we received new cards, why would we still have the old ones? We were not informed of the new rules. We continue to use plastic for distributing beverages. The wastewater is discarded down the drain through silt traps,' he says. Some vendors say that moving to another location would be tough as there may be competition and lack of space. P. Karunanidhi, general secretary of the Chennai Street Vendors' Association and a member of the Corporation's vending committee, acknowledges that there is lack of clarity in the norms. Political interference 'The vending committee and the Corporation have the powers with regard to vending zones and the number of permissible traders who can be issued identity cards. But some councillors and ruling party members interfere in these matters. When higher authorities were informed, instead of rectifying the issues, they asked us to coordinate with the politicians,' another vendor claims. Denying these allegations, an official of the Corporation's Revenue and Finance Department says that more than 32,000 cards were issued at camps held in February. 'There were roughly 2,500 vendors who requested for changes in the name, the address, and the date of birth in the cards. The changes were made and new cards were issued,' he says. The Corporation has proposed regional committees for vending and sent the proposal to the government. Once the government approves it, the civic body will start regularising the operations of the vending and non-vending zones and monitor them, the official says.
New Indian Express
30-04-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
GHMC, 26 ULBs told to demarcate vending zones, issue certificates
HYDERABAD: The MAUD department has directed the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and 26 other Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), mostly in the Hyderabad periphery, to demarcate Street Vending Zones — green, amber and red — in all 30 GHMC circles. The demarcation process will involve the chief city planner and vending certificates will be issued to eligible street vendors. Besides GHMC, the ULBs where demarcation is pending include Ghatkesar, Kompally, Peerzadiguda, Pocharam, Adibatla, Amangal, Bandlaguda Jagir, Jalpally, Kothur, Manikonda, Meerpet, Narsingi, Shamshabad, Shankarpally, Thukkuguda and Turkayamjal in Rangareddy district; and Toopran, Bhootpur, Haliya, Nakrekal, Nandikonda, Kosgi, Maktal, Khanapur, Manthani and Sultanabad. Currently, the city lacks formally demarcated vending zones. A similar initiative taken nearly a decade ago in some parts of Hyderabad failed to take off due to various reasons. To support urban street vendors, Telangana MEPMA, a wing of MAUD, has asked all ULBs to implement the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014. Additionally, the department has asked the ULBs to facilitate financial aid to street vendors through banks, similar to the support provided to Self-Help Groups. Camps will be held to provide social security benefits to vendors and their families under SVANidhi se Samriddhi. Civic infrastructure in vending zones will also be developed to improve their socioeconomic well-being, officials said. Instructions Demarcate vending zones in GHMC and other ULBs in coordination with the Town Planning wing Constitute regular Town Vending Committees as per the Telangana Street Vendor Rules, 2020, replacing provisional ones Form provisional Town Vending Committees in newly formed ULBs with 11 official and non-official members Conduct surveys through a mobile application to identify and cover all street vendors Issue ID cards and vending certificates as per guidelines Hold Town Vending Committee meetings monthly and prepare City Street Vending Plans in consultation with planning authorities Ensure that any eviction or relocation of vendors is done in compliance with the rules
