the goan I network
PANAJI
The Urban Development department has notified ‘town vending committees’ for 14 cities and towns across Goa under a central law designed to protect the livelihoods of street vendors.
The committees include city fathers, members of civil society, bureaucrats, representatives of the street vendors besides individuals drawn from housing societies and residents welfare associations.
In Panaji, the inclusion of controversial corporator Uday Madkaikar, who’s name is linked to the Panjim market scam, has raised eyebrows. Besides Madkaikar, two other corporators -- Shekar Degvekar and Amita Kerkar -- are also included in the panel which is headed by the CCP Commissioner.
Panjim’s sub-divisional magistrate, Urban Health Officer, Panjim Town Police Inspector and Traffic Police Inspector and the NGPDA member-secretary are the other civil servants who have been included.
Architect and urban nature enthusiast Talulah D’Silva and anti-Regional Plan activist Dr Sabina Martins are the two members drawn from civil society. The panel also includes representatives of a couple of housing societies and resident welfare associations.
In Mormugao, the chief officer of the Municipal Council heads the panel, while three councillors -- Yatin Kamurlekar, Shridhar Mardolkar and Murari Bandekar -- figure in it.
As in the case of Panaji and all other cities and towns, the same pattern has been followed to choose individuals to be part of the committees that include civil servants from the health and police department, taluka headquarters, respective planning and development authorities besides civil society members and representatives of the vendors themselves.
Mormugao has the largest panel comprising 32 members and the notification is issued by the Urban development department under the National Policy on Urban Street Vendors, 2009 and subsequent notification of the Goa Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Rules, 2016. It says the committees have been constituted by the respective civic bodies.
Meanwhile in Margao, the panel is headed by the Chief Officer and also includes the MMC Chairperson Dr Babita Prabhudesai and councillors Florence Tito Cardoso and Rupesh Mahatme. It also includes the chairperson of SGPDA, Dr Renuka Da Silva.
In some of the cities and towns the committees also include managers of prominent branches of nationalized banks operating in that city or town.
Besides protecting the livelihoods of the street vendors, the committees will have to strike a balance and take into account the sentiments of residents and commuters who have been raising their voice over encroachments in public spaces.
They could be tasked with the responsibility of identifying ideal spaces for demarcation as ‘hawker zones’ and ‘food courts’ as residents in several cities and towns have raised objections over locales being left dirty and littered with waste, especially where vendors deal in street food.
