GUWAHATI: The All Assam Street Vendors’ Association has come to a confrontation with newly elected Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) mayor Mrigen Sarania after he ordered the traders to remove their stalls immediately prior to facing eviction.
The association has demanded to notify designated vending zones prior to following the order of the mayor.
Association president Chandan Goswami said, “The GMC mayor should notify designated vending zones for the street-vendors before asking them to remove their stalls or threatening to evict them. The association had identified 58 places for vending zones a few years ago. The civic body commissioner had said six designated vending zones will be notified. Unfortunately, no concrete step has been observed from the authorities concerned to date.”
He added, “Eviction of street vendors will lead to death of thousands of families who depend on street vending. Provide us vending zones with basic facilities and we will not run business on pavements or streets.”
Last year, the civic body had conducted a survey and identified 10 locations, including Borbari, Kachari, Ganeshguri, Bhangagarh, Uzan Bazar, Silpukhuri and Pan Bazar area, for setting up vending zones in a bid to make the footpaths and street sides free for pedestrians. This was also submitted by GMC standing counsel S Bora before the Gauhati High Court in December during hearing of a petition.
However, the GMC is yet to notify the zones.
Goswami said, “Setting up sufficient vending zones has been a long pending demand of around 20,000 street vendors, of which around 8,500 are registered ones, who incur huge loss due to frequent eviction by the GMC.”
Goswami said the vendors should be relocated at a business-suitable place as per the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood & Regulation of Street vending) Act before prohibiting them from trading on street side or evicting them.
