After streamlining hawking in Gariahat Market, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation is now to be more stringent with hawkers in the New Market area. Going stricter with hawkers in New Market, the civic body would not allow any hawking on the black top, announced KMC mayor Firhad Hakim, today.
The mayor underlined that there are clear instructions from the town vending committee of the civic body that no hawkers would be allowed on black top or the roads. However, according to Mr Hakim, there are some pockets of New Market where problems still exist.
Following complaints of hawkers occupying major parts of the footpath, the civic body undertook refurbishing the hawking stalls at Gariahat by replacing the plastic shades with tin shades.
The hawking stalls have been set up by KMC in a manner that the new arrangement occupies only one third of the footpath along with gaps in between for letting hose pipes work in case of a fire.
The civic body also has plans of implementing the same idea in other major markets like New Market and Hatibagan. On the other hand, the shop owners in New Market recently wrote to the KMC urging it to take steps to âsave the market from the clutches of the hawkers that are seeing a spurt in number.â
According to the mayor, while Gariahat market has a footpath, the facility is unavailable in New Market. Therefore, while at Gariahat hawkers could be accommodated with tin shades as permanent hawkers; those in New Market are âfloating hawkersâ.
The mayor, however, agreed that there are issues with hawkers sitting on black tops in some pockets. He also pointed out that they do not enter inside the market premises and remain outside on the roads.