AGARTALA, July 19 (TIWN): In last three years – 481 hawkers who were evicted from the sides of major roads in the city during the demolition drive launched by the Agartala Municipal Corporation. Only – 284 hawkers were given alternate arrangement by the corporation according to report.

The ongoing drive by  to evict street vendors from transacting their business in the core areas has underscored the imperatives of identifying hawkers’ zone in the city which is pending for several years now.

Though a hawkers’ zone was demarcated more than 5 years ago, but it is yet to materialize. The delay in identifying hawkers’ zone has not only brought the street vendors to the brink but is adding to congestion and degradation of the core areas as the vendors tend to return to the same place.

Though the MCC made efforts in the past to relocate them, it was not successful as the vendors did not find the place ‘commercially viable’. But that is no rationale to overrun the core areas of the city which is increasingly becoming congested, according to the AMC officials.

Commenting on the latest drive, Shyamal Deb, Mayor – in – Council  said the AMC was committed to providing the vendors basic amenities, including safe water supply, so that consuming street food does not lead to outbreak of diseases. But the hawkers are also duty bound to ensure that the food is prepared under hygienic conditions and cannot resume business in the core zone, he added.

 Various citizen forums  have underlined the imperatives of identifying hawking zones in the city as it involves the livelihood of thousands of people.But they have also stressed the need for notifying ‘No Hawking Zones’’ in the city especially in the core areas similar to ‘No Hoarding Zone’ to regulate their activity.