Absence of vending zones spells chaos on Ludhiana roads

Ludhiana continues to grapple with the absence of designated vending zones, leaving street vendors scattered across busy roads and contributing to traffic congestion and public inconvenience.

Despite the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, mandating the creation of vending zones, the city has yet to see meaningful progress. The Act clearly lays down the process: Any vending zone must first be approved by the Town Vending Committee (TVC), which includes 40 per cent vendor representatives and 60 per cent officials, with the Municipal Commissioner as chairperson. Only after the TVC approval can the government notify a vending zone.

In Ludhiana, the TVCs were constituted in 2019 for each zone, but the last meeting was held in 2022. A survey conducted in 2019 identified 64 vending zones, yet years later, none have been operationalised.

Recently, a project to establish a vending zone near Children Park (old ward number 54, new ward number 78), situated on the backside of the Civil Hospital, has been initiated. The proposed facility, estimated to cost around ?47 lakh, but in the absence of a TVC, it seems difficult for the project to be accomplished.

Another vending zone near Chand Cinema is almost complete, but has run into a controversy. The Public Action Committee (PAC) has objected to the site, claiming that it falls within a designated green belt.

PAC members argue that the move violates environmental norms. “No activity can be carried out in green belt. It’s a complete violation and we have submitted a complaint to the MC,” said one activist. The group has already approached the National Green Tribunal (NGT), citing breaches of environmental regulations and previous NGT orders prohibiting commercial activity in green zones. Although the NGT had formed a committee to look into the matter and later disposed of the case, PAC members allege no inquiry had been conducted and were now preparing to move the tribunal again.

The Chand Cinema site is designed to accommodate 12 vendors, many of whom have been waiting for a legal space to operate following repeated anti encroachment drives. For them, the delay has meant continued uncertainty. One vendor expressed frustration and said that: “We are tired of being pushed from one corner to another. If the government had shifted us to vending zones, we would not be facing harassment every few months.”

Tiger Singh, president of the Rehri Pheri Association, voiced his disappointment, “No vending zone has been made and no vendor shifted. I am regularly writing to the Mayor, but nothing has been done in this regard so far.”

City residents, meanwhile, complain of worsening traffic chaos. “Encroachments on roadsides make driving and walking unsafe. The administration must act quickly to relocate vendors to proper zones,” said one commuter.