Footpath encroachment continues in Dadar despite BMC's anti-hawker drive

Unauthorised hawkers flout norms by openly plying their trade in Dadar West on March 8. PICS/SHADAB KHAN

Despite the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) clearing thousands of unauthorised hawkers from Dadar Market in a special drive over the past few weeks, when mid-day went to take a look at the site twice over the last weekend, on March 6 and 8, these vendors could be seen plying their trade on footpaths for most hours of the day.

According to multiple residents and business owners from the area, hawkers have abandoned rigid setups/structures and remain agile with their sacks. They leave their spots and flee easily as soon as the authorities arrive to take action.

Issue persists due to lack of…

>> Active patrolling by the municipal corporation
>> Large on-the-spot fines imposed by civic body
>> Sufficient police force

Locals' Voices

‘The problem has reached these heights because the BMC has time and again failed to take sustained action against hawkers'
Vaibhav Rege, secretary, Shivaji Park ALM

‘There's a synergy of hawkers, the shops they stand ahead of on the footpaths, the buyers who find them convenient and the authorities who are supposed to act against them. This is what makes them indispensable, and this menace almost impossible to eradicate'
Ravi, Dadar resident

What locals sugget

>> Daylong patrolling by special BMC and reserve police teams
>> Alternative zones for hawkers to operate

March 8
Day mid-day last visited spot