Although the state government claims that its efforts to take hawkers off the streets and into specified zones is in keeping with directives from the Meghalaya High Court, Shane Thabah of the Meghalaya and Greater Shillong Progressive Hawkers and Street Vendors Association (MGSPHSVA) today said that the administration’s acts have been abusing the court’s judgements to circumvent the law.
The relocation of hawkers from Khyndailad to the MUDA parking lot nearby has drawn the ire of the MGSPHSVA for the way it has been carried out.
Thabah said that the government has been undermining the protections and regulations as laid down by the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation Act) 2014.
He added that the final list of eligible vendors has not been finalised and that genuine hawkers have been left out of the allocation of Certificates of Vending (CoVs). He also questioned the conduct of a lottery to decide which hawkers got stalls in the MUDA parking lot and alleged that many shopkeepers or vendors at multiple sites were allotted stalls.
Doubling down against the lottery, Thabah said that the drawing of lots caused “much chaos” on the ground as the lots were “not properly made with seal or signature”, that some persons got lots for the same stall and that allotments did not take into account the “respacing” of vendors in front of the MUDA building.
The CoVs issued had “many anomalies” with differing renewal dates – some as short as six months, others for three or even 12 years
The space and stalls were still being constructed and the paint was still fresh yesterday when the municipal authorities were distributing stalls to vendors. Other amenities such as toilets, warehouse, creche and drinking water are still not ready, Thabah added while also complaining that the overall space has also been hurriedly put together so much so that some stalls are near the big pillars that obstruct and drastically reduce overall vending stall size.
“We have submitted all these grievances to all authorities including the court through the special officer (appointed by the court). Citizens of Shillong should know the truth, despite all efforts from many fronts at deliberate misinformation aimed at undermining a legal process,” Thabah concluded.
