Hawkers in race for lost space on Bertram Street pavements
Times of India | 8 July 2024
12 Kolkata: The hawking hub in New Market has started witnessing a race for lost space on pavements, following an anti-encroachment drive jointly conducted by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) officials and Kolkata Police on June 25.
According to a hawker union leader, around 118 hawkers — who were removed from the pavements on Bertram Street — have been jostling for the lost space.“Ten days after the hawkers were removed from Bertram Street pavements and portions of carriageways are now desperate to get back their space. But, they are being resisted by a section of hawkers, who are feeling threatened as they fear the cops will remove them if they share the space with the evicted hawkers. Tension is escalating over the tussle between two groups of hawkers,” said a hawker union leader and a member of the Town Vending Committee (TVC).
According to the president of Hawker Joint Action Committee, Asit Saha, the situation could worsen if the removed hawkers were not rehabilitated at the earliest. “We have been pleading with the civic authorities and the TVC members to find a solution. Or else, tensions will escalate,” said Saha.
Hamidul Rahaman, who used to sell hosiery goods on a small part of the carriageway on Bertram Street near the new complex of New Market for the past 20 years, said he was trying to find a space in the vicinity. “If I get a small space on the pavements around New Market, it’s fine. Otherwise, I will need to roam with my wares,” said Rahaman. According to a TVC functionary, phased return of hawkers was necessary to enable the surveyors to do a fair assessment of hawkers in each hawking hub during the survey that is currently underway. Though there is no official word on the return of hawkers, they have been told to stay put till the survey report is sent to Nabanna and a rehabilitation plan is worked out for “excess” hawkers.
TOI had earlier reported how hawkers had occupied the pavement on the western flank of Bertram Street and a section of the blacktop on the northern flank of Humayun Place. On Thursday, TOI reported about hawkers returning to occupy the pavements of Chowringhee Place. On Friday, TOI reported about hawkers occupying a section of the southern flank of Lindsay Street.
Similar hawker comebacks have been reported in other parts of the city, including Gariahat, Hatibagan and Canning Street. Hawker union leaders said it didn’t make sense to conduct the survey after driving away hawkers as that would misrepresent the ground situation.
Hawkers across the city said they had been assured that as long as they did not occupy an entire pavement or take up a lion’s share of a street, they would be allowed to carry on with the trade.