The Times of India       27.08.2014  

PMC in haste to relocate vendors to footpaths: NSCC

PUNE:
Members of the town vending committee appointed by the Pune Municipal
Corporation (PMC) to facilitate and implement the National Policy on
Urban Street Vendors have alleged that the civic body was being hasty in
relocating hawkers to footpaths, despite opposition from citizens.

The National Society for Clean Cities (NSCC) has four members on the
town vending panel. NSCC president Satish Khot has said in a letter to
the municipal commissioner, “We notice that the PMC is being rather
hasty in relocating hawkers to existing footpaths (even if they are
wide)

. You are well aware that the roads and streets of the
city are already overburdened with unmanageable traffic. Most parts of
old Pune have almost no footpaths or parking spaces. Encroachments have
already heavily eaten into the space on footpaths, even without
relocating vendors. Taking into account the growing population and the
need of wider footpaths ten years later, footpaths should be the last
option to relocate hawkers.”

The NSCC has demanded that the PMC
should instead take urgent steps to acquire amenity spaces and open
plots as per the development plan of 1987. “The existing ?ota’
markets/shops need to be utilized first. At present, most of the ?ota’
markets are full of illegal occupants, and the hawkers are pushed back
on roads. The PMC must remove these illegal occupants,” the society has
said.

It added that some PMC properties have been allotted to
organizations that conduct activities that are not beneficial or
essential to citizens. These properties can be vacated and used to
relocate vendors.

The TVC members said that waste generated by
vendors will eventually land up on roads and footpaths, unless
efficiently handled. Similarly, toilets and drinking water facilities
must be arranged for vendors, close to their allocated spots. The civic
body must plan a solid waste management system for hawkers’ zones before
allocating spaces to vendors.