NEW DELHI: Suresh, 33, had been selling chole kulche from a stall in South East Delhi’s Harkesh Nagar for seven years a business he inherited from his father, who ran it for 23 years before him. But on May 27, his stall was among nearly 100 shops demolished by the MCD during an anti-encroachment drive.
“This was our only source of income. How will we survive now?” he asked, standing next to the rubble where his stall once stood.
His case is far from isolated. Over the past month, hundreds of street vendors across the city have faced eviction amid intensified anti-encroachment drives led by municipal and police officials. Many vendors allege harassment, confiscation of goods, and demolition of stalls even those operated by vendors with valid Certificates of Vending (CoVs) issued by municipal authorities.
In Madhu Vihar, clothes vendor Saleem Sheikh said he has always kept his vending certificate handy. “Earlier, whenever we were asked to vacate, we showed this certificate and they let us stay. This time, they didn’t care,” he said, holding up his laminated document.
The crackdown has triggered strong protests from vendor groups. On May 19, over a hundred vendors gathered for a public hearing at the Constitution Club, led by the National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI). They demanded that MCD and the New NDMC ensure authorised vendors are not treated as “collateral damage.”
NASVI treasurer Kamlesh Upadhyay said, “The rights of vendors are being violated openly”.“There’s no point in a survey if vendors are removed mid-way,” he added.