‘Vending zone can’t function in isolation’: Chandigarh mayor asks officials to explore alternatives

Chandigarh Mayor Saurabh Joshi on Wednesday found the street vending zone earmarked at Sectors 52-53 surrounded largely by undeveloped jungle-like land, with little habitation or commercial activity nearby, and directed officials to undertake a fresh assessment of the vending arrangement and explore alternatives to provide vendors with a more viable place to conduct business.

The mayor also asked officials to examine interim arrangements for the affected vendors, while a long-term solution is worked out. Following complaints that vendors are unable to occupy the designated site due to its isolated location, the mayor and Municipal Corporation Joint Commissioner Himanshu Gupta inspected the site and found that the vending zone has no houses, market or regular customer movement in its immediate vicinity.

“The location raises questions about the viability of the site, as vendors depend on customer footfall for their livelihood. A vending zone cannot function in isolation. If there are no residents, no commercial activity and hardly any customer footfall.

How will a street vendor sustain his family by working at such a location?” the mayor asked. “Merely earmarking a site for vendors will not serve its purpose unless it is accessible and has sufficient customer movement,” Joshi said, adding: “Officials should undertake a fresh assessment of the Sector 52-53 vending arrangement and explore alternatives that could provide vendors with a more viable place to conduct business.” The issue is now set to reach the General House of the Municipal Corporation, as Joshi said, “Vendors' concerns are genuine and deserve a practical solution.

I will take this issue to the House so that a fair, workable and sustainable arrangement can be considered.” The mayor said vending zones needed to balance vendors’ livelihood with cleanliness, accessibility, traffic management and orderly use of public spaces.