After some preliminary moves initiated by the Tiruchirapalli City Corporation to implement the national policy on urban street vendors, which has since become an Act, there appears to be no forward movement to regulate street vending in the city.
The corporation has carried out an enumeration of the street vendors in the city and had notified a list of 80 vending zones in the city towards implementation of the policy. All other places in the city are to be treated as non-vending zones
The Act recognises street vending as an integral part of the urban retail trade and provides street vendors legal status. Street vendors are to be enumerated ward-wise and each street vendor will be registered by the town vending committee and issued identity cards.
Municipal authorities are to provide a range of civic services to street vendors, including allocation of designated areas for their trade.
However, the list of vending zones announced by the corporation had triggered discontent among street vendors in the city as they feared that attempts were being made to oust them from the existing areas of operation to places which are secluded and inaccessible to the general public.
The list of vending zones identified by the corporation does not include the city’s main commercial area such as the NSB Road, Big Bazaar Street, Singarathope, and Nandhi Kovil Street, where a large number of vendors operate, it was pointed out. The move triggered protests from street vendors’ associations too after which the issue was put on the backburner.
According to sources, the corporation is awaiting instructions from the government after having forwarded the survey results to the Commissioner of Municipal Administration.
V. Mageswaran, national executive committee member, National Association of Street Vendors of India, points out that Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, has since been notified in the gazette. “According to the information available with us, the State government has drafted a policy and a scheme to regulate street vending. Once this is approved, we expect the scheme to be implemented across the State,” he says.
However, Mr. Mageswaran feels that a town vending committee, with representatives of street vendors and voluntary organisations, should be formed as stipulated by the Act by the Corporation. The vending zones should be approved by this committee. The vending zones announced by the corporation did not include places where a large number of vendors are now operating, he said. As per the Act, street vendors had to be regularised at their existing places of operation or shifted to a new vending zone created with their consent.
The corporation, Mr. Mageswaran says, did not adopt a balanced approach on the matter. New vending zones should be accessible with proper transport and other infrastructure. The Act should not be taken advantage of to oust vendors from their existing places of operation, he said.
Corporation has notified 80 zones for hawkers
Main shopping districts in the city are not part of these zones
