Two-thirds space was earmarked on a stretch of the southern footpath along Rashbehari Avenue, near Kalighat Metro station, for pedestrians a few weeks ago. Hawkers can set up stalls in the rest.
The street vendors have complied with the rule but a couple of stalls are still on the road.
The footpath was being repaired over the last several months. It was during the repairs that the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) marked one-third space for hawkers.
While the repairs were underway, the hawkers who had stalls on the stretch of the footpath sold their stuff from the carriageway of Rashbehari Avenue.
Now that the repairs are over, the hawkers have come back to the pavement and restricted themselves within the one-third width. Before the repairs started, they used to occupy nearly half the width of the footpath, at times even more than that.
The two stalls that are still on the road sell mobile phone covers and other accessories. A youth in one of the stalls said they were still on the road because the new structures for the stalls were yet to arrive.
“We had stalls that were wider than 5ft. Now we have to reduce the size. We have ordered new structures for the stalls. They are likely to arrive tonight,” a youth said on Sunday afternoon.
Street vending rules, framed by the state government, have made it mandatory for hawkers to restrict themselves within one-third width of pavements. The rest has to be kept free for pedestrians. The rules also bar hawkers from setting up stalls on roads.
A resident of Jatin Das Road in the Lake area, who often walks through the pavement near Kalighat Metro station, said the footpath now looks much spacious on some stretches.
Manisha Bose, the councillor of Ward 87, said she had approached the officials in KMC to renovate the pavement because it had broken along several stretches.
“The footpath was undulating as well as broken along some stretches. A thorough repair was necessary,” she said. “I will enquire about the two stalls that are still on the road and ask the owners to shift to the pavement soon,” Bose said.
The hawkers have kept themselves within one-third width of the pavement, but they are within 50ft of the Rashbehari crossing.
The city’s town vending committee, which is the sole authority to regulate hawkers, has decided that street vendors won’t be allowed within 50ft of 58 busy intersections. The Rashbehari crossing is among the 58.
A daily commuter complained that the presence of so many vendors just outside Kalighat Metro station makes it difficult to approach and or come out of the
station.
