KMC pauses distribution of vending certs to hawkers
Times of India | 20 August 2025
Kolkata: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has yet again decided to keep the distribution of vending certificates on hold. The civic body was supposed to start distributing vending certificates among 8,727 hawkers — chosen based on a KMC survey — from Aug 16. Two years ago, the civic body had announced it would distribute vending certificates on the basis of a 2015 survey. But that had also not happened.
Though KMC had planned to hand over 8,727 vending certificates in major hawking hubs like New Market, Hatibagan, and Gariahat, it later cited objection from a section of the Town Vending Committee (TVC) to keep the process in abeyance. According to a TVC member, the committee and the KMC will need to take note of the 54,000 hawkers who were primarily listed by the civic body-appointed surveyors. The names of most of them were deleted when a final list was prepared of hawkers eligible for vending certificates. "We first need to decide the fate of the hawkers whose names were deleted. But we apprehend that the day we start distributing vending certificates, those whose names have been deleted will be engaged in a mad rush to grab carriageways and pavements," said a TVC member.
According to TVC member Saktiman Ghosh, also the leader of Hawker Sangram Committee, the TVC should ensure the hawker survey is extended to other parts of the city. "Giving vending certificates to bona fide hawkers is an effective step to prevent the encroachment of carriageways and pavements. But giving such certificates to only a small segment of the city's hawking population won't solve the problem," said Ghosh. According to a KMC official, they are waiting for a nod from the mayor's office to resolve the issue before distributing vending certificates.
However, according to a KMC official, the hawker population has already reached the 3-lakh mark. "It is an uphill task to issue vending certificates to all hawkers at one go. But those who haven't applied yet will be given the opportunity to apply later. However, it will be a continuous process and may take years. But the TVC will need to keep a vigil on new encroachments of carriageways or pavements," the official said.