Mamata Banerjee Grants Hawkers One Month to Clear Footpaths, Proposes New Hawking Zones
News Mania Desk/ Agnibeena Ghosh/28th June 2024
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced on Thursday that the eviction of hawkers is not the objective of her government. Instead, she has given hawkers a month to clear the footpaths and roads they have encroached on for their businesses. This announcement comes in the midst of ongoing eviction efforts targeting encroachers, including hawkers, across the state.
During a review meeting on the issue of hawkers’ encroachment, Banerjee established a committee to conduct a survey and submit a report within 15 days. The state government plans to identify specific “hawking zones” and build structures to accommodate hawkers, including storage facilities for their goods, and issue identity cards.
“I do not have the right to take away anyone’s livelihood or make anyone unemployed. Millions support their families through hawking. There will be no eviction for one month. During this period, the hawkers must clear the footpaths,” said Banerjee, who also leads the Trinamool Congress.
She emphasized the need for a survey to determine where legal hawkers can be accommodated. The government aims to create godowns and other facilities to support hawkers but maintains that road occupation cannot continue. Banerjee warned that new hawkers found encroaching on footpaths would be arrested.
The meeting included senior ministers, bureaucrats, police officers, mayors of all corporations, and chairmen of municipalities. Banerjee held political leaders and police accountable for the issue of street occupation, criticizing councilors for failing to monitor the situation. She pointed out that local leaders often take money from hawkers in exchange for allowing them to set up businesses, only to later displace them forcefully.
“Blaming the hawkers alone is not fair; it’s our fault too. Why are we not constructing buildings in the New Market area to relocate the hawkers?” Banerjee questioned. New Market, formerly known as Hogg Market, is a historic market complex in Kolkata’s Esplanade region, currently crowded with hawkers.
Banerjee committed to reviewing the situation in a month and ordered the removal of all illegal parking lots around Kolkata. She also declared that her government would not tolerate littering on the streets.
The chief minister’s approach reflects a balanced attempt to address the hawking issue without jeopardizing the livelihoods of those involved. By providing a grace period and planning designated hawking zones, the government aims to regulate street vending more systematically. The proposed identity cards and godowns are part of an effort to formalize and support hawkers’ activities.
The New Market area, established during British rule, symbolizes the challenge of integrating historical market spaces with modern urban management. Banerjee’s focus on this area underscores her administration’s intention to preserve the market’s legacy while ensuring it operates within legal and practical constraints.
Overall, Banerjee’s strategy aims to balance economic survival for hawkers with the need for orderly public spaces, reflecting her administration’s broader goal of inclusive urban development. The planned survey and subsequent actions will be critical in determining the effectiveness and fairness of this initiative.
