Ahead of Makar Sankranti, BBMP marshals continue to evict footpath vendors in the Jayanagar market area

Street vendor Kala with two crates of bananas and coconuts. (South First)

When South First asked the BBMP marshal about who had ordered the footpath hawkers’ eviction, he said that he had been tasked with the duty of evicting these hawkers who have illegally encroached on public spaces, like footpaths and roads, where pedestrian and traffic movements have been hampered.

“Our supervisor had told us to tell the hawkers that they would be given designated spots to sell their merchandise within a span of 10 days. I am just doing my job,” he said.

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Vendors woes

Kala, a native of Salem in Tamil Nadu, has been a vendor at the Jayanagar market for the past 20 years.

“I was born and brought up here in Jayanagar. My family and I have been selling bananas, coconuts, beetle leaves, and lemons for the past 20 years. We have our vendor’s license and cards issued by the civic authority (BBMP), and up until February and November last year, and January this year, there were no troubles at all,” Kala told South First.

She added, “On a daily basis, we sell merchandise worth ₹3,000 to ₹3,500, with which we earn a profit of around ₹500 to ₹600 per day. During the festival seasons, we earn a bit more, which we save for our children’s school fees and other essential requirements.”

Thangamma, a flower vendor. (South First)

Thangamma, a 48-year-old pushcart vendor, and her daughter sell chrysanthemum flowers and garlands on the other side of the market.

She told South First that the marshals want them to keep moving and not stay in one place to sell their merchandise. “Whenever the BBMP marshal comes, I move my pushcart to the opposite side of the road into a gully and stay there until his shift is over. After that, we are allowed to sell at the same spot,” she said.

She explained that she has been selling flowers for the past 15 years and that she has the updated ID cards and license forms issued by the BBMP to sell her merchandise on the streets of Jayanagar.

She said that she strongly suspects that some other footpath vendors — those who sell clothing and other fancy products like bags and belts — have formed separate groups and are trying to evict the fruit, flower, and vegetable vendors from the Jayanagar market vicinity.

“It looks like they have complained against us by stating that we are occupying the footpath and roads, affecting pedestrian movements and parking of vehicles largely,” Thangamma told South First.

Subramanyan and his wife Rani. (South First)

A couple, Subramanyan and his wife Rani, sell groundnuts and sweet potatoes on a pushcart near the Jayanagar market area. Though they too are equipped with all the licenses and ID cards from the BBMP and their trade union organisations, they become restless when the BBMP marshals arrive.

“We have been trading all these years at the same place. If we are asked to go somewhere else all of a sudden, where would we go?” they asked, speaking to South First.

Amir Khan, a street vendor selling ladies’ clothing on 9th Main in Jayanagar 4th Block, told South First that the authorities have been cracking down on them since February last year.

“Though we have our vending licenses, they (BBMP marshals) are waiting for our cards to expire so that they can evict us from the market area. I have been doing this for over 17 years and I don’t have any other means of livelihood,” he said.

A street vending card issued by the civic authority. (South First)

He added, “The marshals come up to us and ask us to take all the clothing we have put up for selling and lift it up using our hands. If we keep it on some parked vehicles, they immediately take a photo or a video, and raise a complaint against us.”

“A majority of vendors selling clothing, bags, belts, shoes, chappals, sandals, etc, belong to the minority community. There is a rumour floating around that the present BJP MLA CK Ramamurthy is not happy with vendors, belonging to the minority community, doing business in his constituency of Jayanagar. We have approached him in groups several times to arrange for a survey and mark places for us to sell our wares, but he is not keen on helping us,” Khan told South First.

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Evicting vendors

A member of the Federation of Bengaluru District Street Vendors’ Association, Vinay Sreenivasan, told South First that the BBMP authorities are, at present, keen on evicting footpath vendors from 27th Cross, 27th A Cross, as well as 9th Main and 10th Main.

“The majority of street vendors on 27th Cross and 27th A Cross are into selling fruits, vegetables, and flowers, while the vendors on 9th Main and 10th Main are into selling textile garments, fancy jewellery, imitation jewellery, bags, belts, shoes, and sandals,” said Sreenivasan.

On 27 December 2023, the members of the Federation of Bengaluru District Street Vendors’ Association met with the Zonal Commissioner and Joint Commissioner, BBMP, to put forth their demands of allowing them to do their businesses without interruption and harassment from the BBMP officials.

The BBMP authorities, in turn, promised that they would call for a Town Vending Meeting, but it has not been called so far.

Sreenivasan also charged that the civic authority had arbitrarily indulged in evicting footpath vendors who had valid documents issued by the same authorities, without serving them any kind of notices beforehand.

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Following orders

Chief Engineer South Zone Rajesh told South First that according to the law, there is no provision for any footpath vendors to sell their goods, display them on footpaths, or create a kind of godown for storing their products.

“The drive carried out by BBMP marshals on 12 January was not an eviction drive. We are only telling them (footpath vendors) to sell on the move and not remain static. There is no provision for static or stationary selling as it would affect pedestrian and traffic movement,” Rajesh said.

A BBMP marshal asking a street vendor to move. (South First)

Another BBMP official said that the civic authority had information that hundreds of street vendors have come into Jayanagar market area ahead of Makar Sankranti to sell their merchandise, which has to be controlled.