There was confusion and chaos on the Mysore City Corporation (MCC) premises on Thursday as vendors running roadside eateries thronged the office to procure trade licence forms.
District in-charge Minister S.A. Ramdas had announced on Wednesday that the vendors would be issued licence to conduct their business and would be rehabilitated in 39 hawking zones identified in the city.
The forms for procuring the trade licences were to be made available from Thursday, but vendors expressed ire that there was a shortage of forms and the time was running out for procuring the licence.
The food vendors have to apply for licences by Saturday.
Assurance
Corporation Commissioner K.S. Raykar assured the vendors that adequate number of forms would be made available on Friday.
Meanwhile, there are differences among street vendors over the proposed hawking zones. Hawkers argue that it would not be feasible to establish their outlets at a place which may not be patronised by their customers. There was also consternation over the proposal to accommodate nearly 600 vendors on Valmiki Road and Kalamandira Road, which the hawkers termed “impractical”.
President of the Chamundeshwari Street Vendors' Association Manjunath Doddamane told The Hindu that the authorities should have issued permission for hawkers to resume their business subject to compliance with stringent guidelines. Issuing trade licences, setting up hawking zones, etc. should have been taken up in a phased manner so as to minimise resistance to the move, he said.
There are nearly 2,000 vendors running roadside eateries in Mysore city, according to the association. Corporation authorities, however, put the figure at 1,200.
The authorities cracked down on their business on April 8 to check the spread of waterborne diseases.
