Street vendors protest MC's eviction drive in Shimla

Hundreds of street vendors affiliated with the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) staged a protest at the Deputy Commissioner's office here on Tuesday against the directive of the Shimla Municipal Corporation to submit multiple documents and affidavits for verification and registration.

The protesters demanded immediate withdrawal of the order, a halt to the eviction drive, strict implementation of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, and the issuance of certificates to both registered and unregistered vendors.

CITU state president Vijender Mehra alleged that vendors were being removed from different areas of Shimla for the past six months without being allotted alternative sites.

He alleged that demanding extra documents amounted to harassment and violation of both 2014 Act and Supreme Court directions. "According to the Act, street vendors cannot be evicted arbitrarily," he added.