The Indian Express             20.12.2013 

45 city roads to be hawker-free from today, ban on cooking food on streets

If Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is to be believed, from Friday
city roads will be free of hawkers. The PMC on Thursday announced the
implementation of hawkers policy and commissioner Mahesh Pathak
repeatedly claimed that they will be the first civic body to do so.
Hawkers will not be allowed on 45 main roads of the city and a ban will
also be imposed on cooking food on city streets, Pathak said.

As per the directions of Supreme Court, the civic administration
has set up a 30-member panel to implement hawkers’ policy in the city.
“The first meeting of committee held today approved various proposals of
civic administration, which included making 45 roads free of hawkers,”
said municipal commissioner Mahesh Pathak.

The committee includes 12 representatives of hawkers
associations, six from NGOs, six from mohalla committee and six civic
officers. The civic administration made a presentation of SC order in
the first meeting of the committee before discussing its proposals.

“All the members approved the civic administration list of 45
roads for making them free of hawkers. Thus, 153 junctions on these
roads will not have any hawkers,” Pathak said. The suggestion to make
available select spots alongside these roads for hawkers has been
accepted but decision would be taken only after the committee gives
feedback on the basis of consultation of the local police, he said.

Going by the SC directions, pedestrians should be able to use and
only a maximum of one-third of the footpath area can be occupied by
hawkers, Pathak said, “It means most of the footpaths in the city should
be free of hawkers. There should not be hawkers near bus stops,
hospitals, religious places, educational institutes.”

Among other regulations, the policy clearly says that no cooking
is allowed by hawkers. “All the eateries alongside roads which includes
Vada paav centre, chinese food or other eateries that cook in open and
sell products are banned,” Pathak said.

The PMC will have 15 teams, one for each ward, to keep a check on
illegal hawkers. Meanwhile, the civic administration along with hawkers’
association would undertake a survey of hawkers which would include
biometric record, GPS, fingerprint and Aadhaar card registration. The
latest machinery for online registration and verification would be used
for checking illegal hawkers. The license fee has also been revised with
monthly charge ranging from Rs 750 to Rs 6,000 would be recovered from
hawkers based on the location of their business. Earlier, the license
fee was Rs 75 to Rs 1,500 per month.

The PMC will rehabilitate hawkers in the available commercial
facility of civic body and is planning for weekly, biweekly market in
various parts of the city.

“I have been doing business on footpath for last few years. The
PMC has been taking action against us but its just for the sake of it.
We continue to do business with support of civic staff and local
politics,” said a hawker. The hawkers get information of the civic drive
in advance, he said adding, “We don’t do business till the civic team
leaves the location.”