Mumbai: Hawkers demand relief for SVANidhi loan recipients

Town vending committee comprises 20 members; 8 representing hawkers. File pic

Hawker unions are poised to demand an end to actions against street vendors who received loans under the PM SVANidhi scheme. A meeting of the town vending committee, chaired by Civic Chief IS Chahal, is scheduled for Thursday.

According to the hawker policy guidelines, the BMC has resolved to conduct elections to appoint hawker representatives to the city and zonal town vending committees. In June 2023, the BMC published a draft list of 32,000 hawkers eligible to vote for the town vending committee. This draft list received approximately 103 suggestions and objections, which will be reviewed by the committee.

Azhad Hawkers Union President Dayashankar Singh voiced concerns, saying, "The BMC has prepared a list of 32,000 hawkers as voters, but the authority has distributed loans to approximately 1.5 lakh hawkers under the central government scheme. How can they repay the loan when the BMC is taking action against them? We will raise this issue at the meeting. The civic administration has already made decisions regarding the hawker's policy, and the current process appears to be merely a formality. Hawker representation in the town vending committee stands at only 40 per cent, which is why our protests within the committee have limited impact."

Shashank Rao, president of the Mumbai Hawkers Union, asserted that they would request the formation of an expert committee to address the suggestions and objections. Under the Hawkers Policy guidelines, the BMC can issue licenses to 2.5 per cent of the city's population. Considering Mumbai's population, BMC should issue licenses to at least 3 lakh hawkers. The BMC has already provided loans to around 1.5 lakh vendors and is taking action against them. Rao said, "We will also demand an end to actions against hawkers. The BMC appears to have no intention of implementing this policy, even if they are obligated to do so."

Following the finalisation of the voter list, the state labour commissioner will oversee an election for 40 per cent of hawker representatives on the city and zonal town vending committees. The town vending committee comprises 20 members, with 8 representing hawkers.