The organisation demanded an immediate stop to all ongoing and planned evictions and demolitions of vendor stalls and pushcarts.
Published Sep 24, 2025 | 3:31 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 24, 2025 | 3:31 PM
Human Rights Forum accused the GVMC of flouting The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014.
Synopsis: HRF said the GVMC has been evicting vendors without adhering to due process, often acting on impromptu oral orders. These “arbitrary” actions were a direct assault on the Constitutional right to livelihood, and stripped vendors of their wares, besides harassing them, and undermined their dignity.
Condemning the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC)’s “unlawful and violent” eviction of street vendors, the Human Rights Forum (HRF) has called for an immediate halt to the expulsion.
The GVMC’s move, violating The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, has displaced more than 2,850 roadside vendors and small shop owners, the HRF said in a media release on Wednesday, 24 September. Further, it has plunged thousands of families into economic distress and insecurity.
The rights body said the GVMC has been evicting vendors without adhering to due process, often acting on impromptu oral orders. These “arbitrary” actions were a direct assault on the Constitutional right to livelihood, and stripped vendors of their wares, besides harassing them, and undermined their dignity.
“Street vendors are the backbone of our urban informal economy, providing affordable goods and services to lakhs of citizens. Yet, instead of recognising their vital contribution, the GVMC has resorted to violent removal and confiscated their goods, deepening the precarity they already endure,” HRF said.
The 2014 Vendors Act, enacted to protect street vendors from arbitrary removal and harassment, has prohibited such actions. Section 3(3) of the Act mandates that no vendor should be evicted or relocated until a survey is completed and vending certificates are issued.
Section 12 further calls for notice and proper procedure before any eviction. The law also stipulates the formation of Town Vending Committees (TVCs) with vendor representation to regulate vending zones transparently.
The HRF accused the GVMC of flouting the provisions in the Act by failing to conduct surveys, issue certificates, or engage with a functioning TVC, effectively reducing regulation to repression.
“The Corporation is in contempt of the law,” the HRF charged, noting that the Act’s framework for balancing vendors’ rights with public convenience has been twisted into punishment.
The HRF said that the evictions affected over 2,850 vendors recently, leaving families without income and exacerbating their vulnerability. It criticised the GVMC for acting unilaterally, ignoring the democratic guarantees owed to the city’s most marginalised residents.
The organisation demanded an immediate stop to all ongoing and planned evictions and demolitions of vendor stalls and pushcarts. It called for a transparent process in line with the 2014 Act, including forming functional TVCs, fair surveys, and the designation of vending zones in consultation with vendors.
Besides, the HRF urged the issuance of Certificates of Vending to all eligible vendors and restitution for those evicted, including the return of seized goods without penalty and compensation for lost livelihoods. The group also demanded accountability for officials who have violated the law.
HRF representatives, including AP state vice-president M Sarat, state committee member K Anuradha, and AP & Telangana coordination committee member VS Krishna, reiterated their commitment to fight for the rights of street vendors.
“The GVMC’s actions are not just a legal violation but a moral failing,” they stated, vowing to continue pressing for justice for Visakhapatnam’s street vendors.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
