Street vendors warn of protests as survey starts in Chennai

The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has started survey of street vendors to implement its vending and non-vending zone projects in the areas of Adayar, Perungudi, Sholinganallur and Kodambakkam.

However, the association of street vendors of Chennai is apprehensive over the move as the survey is done without Town Vending Committees (TVCs). Vendor association leaders want the corporation to conduct the survey after taking into confidence all sections of vendors or else there could be major protests against the same.

The street vendors opine that the Tamil Nadu Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Scheme and Rules cannot be properly implemented, unless the TVCs are in place.

The TVCs had elected street vendors along with officials and these committees were acting as the first point of contact for any issues related to the vendors. However, the TVCs were dissolved after a Madras High Court ruling in a case contending non-adherence of rules while forming the TVCs.

While speaking to media persons, the street vendor association leader V. Mageshvaran said that the absence of TVCs has led to a freehand for officials to take decisions and called for the constitution of the TVCs as early as possible.

The vendor association leader also said that the GCC must stop eviction of street vendors from any parts of Chennai city until the survey is completed and TVC is reconstituted.

The officials, however, said that the survey is being done only to get proper feedback of the city vendors and that the eviction was possible only after the sanction from the TVCs.

The leaders from street vendors' association also said that there would be massive protests if any evacuation is done without taking into consideration all the aspects including feedback from the grassroots and from street vendors' association.