CM INITIATES SURVEY TO HELP CITY STREET VENDORS; GOVT TO BEAR COST

NEW DELHI: Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, on Friday, urged the Town Vending Committees (TVC) and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) officials, to start the survey soon to resolve the issue of displacement of street vendors by the authorities across the city.

He also announced that the Delhi government will bear the cost of the survey, which is to be conducted by MCD.

The CM said, “The survey will identify appropriate places for the street vendors other than the street markets across the city, which will help the vendors set up business and will also help generate employment. The whole administrative system covering street vendors at present needs improvement.”

Speaking on the procedures of the initiative, the chief minister said, “I want to request the MCD officials present amongst us to call a meeting for the TVCS by December 31. The TVC meetings will decide and finalise the agencies that will carry out the survey.” He added, “I was notified by the MCD officials that they do not have the required funds to carry out the TVC surveys. I told them that the Delhi government will provide funds for the survey. I hope that the street vendors will not have to face any obstacles after the survey, and they will get legal backing and support for their places.”

Speaking on the issue of taking money from the vendors, Delhi PWD Minister Satyendra Jain said, “Vendors are often troubled by authorities for setting up shops on the streets, and corrupt officials often extract money from them. To eradicate all these issues, a legal survey will be conducted initially. A certificate will be issued to the street vendors based on the survey with vendor details. Details of their families will also be included in the same. The survey will be completed within the next three to four months and the vending spaces will be fixed thereafter.”

Talking about the benefits of the initiative he added: “This move will help in fixing the vending spaces as well as the vending zones across the city. Our motive is to promote vending on a large scale. Delhi has around 3-4 lakh vendors, however, the actual numbers will be known after once the survey is done. By fixing the vending spaces, we will be supporting around 15-20 lakh people of the city.”