Calcutta High Court on Monday asked the Calcutta Municipal Corporation (CMC) and New Market police station to continue a “strict vigil” on the Oberoi Grand arcade so hawkers are not able to again encroach on two-thirds of the pavement that has been cleared for pedestrians.
Justice Amrita Sinha said the demarcation — one-third of the width of the pavement for hawkers and the rest for pedestrians — must be “strictly followed”.
On some stretches of the pavement, barely 3ft of space would remain free for pedestrians till Saturday afternoon. There were hawkers sitting on both sides of the pavement and their stalls, along with shoppers, made walking through the arcade a struggle.
Police had barricaded a portion of Chowringhee Road along the arcade for pedestrians, virtually admitting that it was not possible to walk on the pavement.
Hawkers who used to sit along the side of the arcade lined with stores had closed their stalls. They removed the tables on which they would spread their ware by Sunday.
The hawkers along the road, too, did not extend their stalls beyond a yellow line drawn by the CMC.
The changes followed an order by the high court on November 28 that all hawkers in the arcade must be restricted within a third of the width of the pavement.
The CMC, the police and the town vending committee of Calcutta swung into action after the court’s order. The one-third-for-hawkers rule is part of the street vending regulations framed by the state government but was never enforced.
Even now, the norms are violated in most places where there are hawkers.
On Monday, the matter came up for hearing again in the high court.
The CMC filed a report stating that it had drawn a line on the pavement in the arcade to demarcate the two-thirds space that needs to be kept free for pedestrians. The civic body also filed pictures showing the current situation of the pavement in the Grand arcade.
“The CMC and New Market police station are directed to maintain strict vigil to ensure that the demarcation that has been made is strictly followed and the vendors do not encroach on the two-thirds portion of the pavement meant for pedestrians,” Justice Sinha said on Monday.
There were representations from some hawkers who said that their names did not feature on the list of the 116 hawkers in the Grand arcade prepared by the town vending committee. The court asked them to approach the committee for relief.
The committee has been empowered by the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, a central act, to identify street vendors and relocate them where necessary. The members of Calcutta’s committee include police officers, hawkers, CMC officials and elected representatives, among others.
The lawyer appearing for Oberoi Grand, the petitioners, told the court that the hotel is a grade I heritage structure and the presence of any hawker in the arcade blocked the facade of the structure.
The owners of several stalls in the arcade said there were no hawkers’ stalls in the arcade till the late 1990s. There were only a few vendors who would move around with small kiosks or spread their ware on the ground.
The store owners said that when the hawkers first came, they were allowed to sit only for two hours in the afternoon. Now, many hawkers have permanent stalls in the arcade.