The implementation of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, in Kochi Corporation areas will be delayed despite the preparation of a preliminary list of street vendors to be rehabilitated by the corporation.
In fact, some of the street vendors had to approach the High Court against the corporation’s move to evict them before putting in place the welfare schemes under the Act. Recently, the High Court had allowed a few street merchants on the Subhash Chandra Bose Road, near Kadavanthra, to carry on with their business without obstructing traffic and pedestrian movements. Nevertheless, the court gave the civic body the liberty to take action against them if any illegality was found. The court had also said that the corporation would be at liberty to ensure that their businesses were carried out in a tidy manner. In fact, the High Court came to the rescue of the vendors in view of section 3(3) of the Act. The section forbids eviction or relocation of street vendors till the survey for identifying the vendors is completed and the certificate of vending is issued to all vendors. The provisions of the Act has mandated that street vendors should be relocated or evicted by the local authority physically only after they fail to vacate the place specified in the certificate of vending.
The Act has stipulated the formation of a Town Vending Committee tasked with the job of ensuring that all existing street vendors, identified in the survey, are accommodated in the vending zones subject to a norm conforming to two-and-a-half per cent of the population in accordance with the plan for street vending and holding capacity of vending zones.
Mayor Soumini Jain said the list of identified street vendors had been given to various unions of street vendors for verification. The final list would be in place after carrying out corrections as suggested by the unions. She said that on getting the report from the committee, the corporation council will take a call on identification of vending zones in the city.
Ernakulam Jilla Vazhiyora Kachavada Thozhilali Union president K.K. Sivan decried the delay in identifying street vendors and vending zones. He said that vendors doing small businesses were willing to be relocated. But the corporation was yet to identify the zones and issue them identity certificates. He suggested that the corporation could at least issue licences to vendors on payment of a nominal fee till they were relocated as per the provisions of the Act.
