No hawking on overbridges, near railway station premises: Bombay HC

Cracking the whip on illegal hawkers in the city the Bombay High Court today restricted hawking to designated zones only while banning the activity on foot and rail overbridges and within 150 metres of railway stationsA division bench of Justices B R Gavai and M S Karnik refused to accept contentions made in a bunch of petitions filed by city hawkers that according to the Street Vendors Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending Act the municipal authorities cannot evict themThe petitions claimed that after the Act came into effect they are permitted to set up shops anywhere and the municipal bodies cannot evict them as there are now no nonhawking zonesThe court however opined that if these contentions were to be accepted it would create chaos in all citiesThe bench in its 118page judgement referred to the September 29 stampede on the Elphinstone Road railway station foot overbridge that resulted in the death of 23 peopleOn account of the mad rush of the passengers there was commotion on the bridge which led to loss of 23 precious human lives The presence of large number of hawkers on the foot overbridge is said to be one of the major contributing factors in the mishap the court saidRelying on a Supreme Court judgement of 2009 after which the municipal bodies had identified hawking zones the court said No hawking would be permitted within 100 metres from any place of worship holy shrine educational institutions and hospitals and within 150 metres from any municipal or other markets or from any railway stationsNo hawking would be permitted on foot bridges and overbridges also the court addedFor places of worship the bench said hawkers can be permitted to sell only items required by devotees as offerings such as flowers candles coconuts and so on We are faced with a situation to balance the rights of the hawkers to do vending business to earn their livelihood on one hand and rights of the citizens to use the footpaths and roads without causing any obstruction and also ensure their security the court saidThe bench noted that till vending and nonvending zones are notified by the authorities in accordance with the Act hawking activity can be continued only in areas identified as hawking zones as approved by the Apex Court and in no case such activity can be permitted in nonhawking zonesThe bench further observed that footpaths and pavements are public properties intended to serve general publicThey are not laid for private use and their use for private purpose frustrates the very object for which they are carved out from portions of the public roads the court said We are therefore of the view that while considering the rights of the hawkers to conduct their vending business on streets we will have to balance the rights of the pedestrians to walk on the footpaths and the citizens to use the roads forthe purpose of plying their vehicles the court notedThe bench ordered that the municipal bodies that have not conducted surveys to identify vending zones carry out the exercise in the pattern adopted by the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai It also said that corporations and councils where town vending committees have not been formed should asked to constitute these in accordance with the 2009 policy within six weeks and conduct surveys within three months thereafter the court directedThe court further held as unsustainable a Government Resolution issued on January 9 which directs for forming town vending committees without representation of street vendorsThis defeats the very purpose of the Act which emphasises on participation of representatives of streetvendors at all important stages the court observed The said government resolution which provides for doing away with the said mandatory requirement would not be sustainable