MC fails to issue vendor ID cards

Harshraj Singh

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 9

Though the Municipal Council, Jagraon, has started issuing I-cards to street vendors, the state’s largest civic body, Ludhiana Municipal Corporation has been delaying the matter for a long time. Even a year after more than 20,000 street vendors were covered under a survey in the city, the MC has failed to issue identity cards to the registered vendors.

The street vendor unions have blamed the MC authorities for ignoring the Supreme Court orders as also the Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending Act 2014 by not setting up town vending zones. A group of the street vendors is planning to move court against the civic body for delaying the vending zone project.

Sources said questions were being raised over the survey. However, the vendors claimed they must be allotted space at the designated vending zones, which are yet to be set up in the city.

President of the Rehri Phari Union of Punjab Bal Kishan Pappi said: “We have been demanding vending zones for the past many years. The Supreme Court had ordered to set up vending zones but the civic body does not care about it. Even the survey of street vendors is still incomplete, as no identity cards have been issued. If vending zones are set up, no vendor will be forced to encroach on any road to run his business. After every three-four months, MC officials give statements that vending zones will be set up at the earliest, but nothing is done on the ground. We will take legal advice and move court against the civic body for not implementing the Supreme Court orders.”

The survey to identify street vendors had kicked off in May 2017 and it was supposed to be completed within six months. After the survey, identity cards were supposed to be given to the registered vendors.

Learn from other cities

The Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh, held a draw of lots for the allotment of the sites marked for street vendors recently. In the first phase, 456 vendors were allotted sites through a draw of lots held at the MC office in Chandigarh on December 28. The draw was conducted for 23 vending zones in separate sectors. The vendors also opposed the decision to declare Sector 17 as a no-vending zone. Tiger Singh of Rehri Phari Federation, Ludhiana, said: “The MC, Ludhiana, should set up vending zones as the civic bodies of Gurugram, Bhubaneswar, Jabalpur and other cities of South India have already set up these. We came to know that vending zones have also been set up in a few cities of Bihar and Jharkhand. But, the biggest MC of Punjab, Ludhiana is deliberately delaying the vending zone project.”

Survey faulty, says Mayor

“The survey of street vendors in the city has been done in an improper way. It seems the staff did not go to the field to conduct the survey in the right manner. We are going to issue a notice to the firm concerned which had conducted the survey. Now, the MC will cross-check the vendors identified during the survey,” said Balkar Singh Sandhu, Mayor.