Two surveillance units comprising officials from the New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA) started to move around New Town and check for encroachments on Tuesday.
These seven-member teams were formed by the NKDA last week. They will work to prevent encroachment on pavements by hawkers and keep records of encroachment across the three action areas of the township, a senior NKDA official said.
According to the official, the teams will coordinate with the newly-formed New Town Vending Committee as well as officers from the three police stations in the township.
The town vending committee, made of hawkers, elected representatives, NGOs, government officials and police, is responsible for regulating hawkers in the respective towns and cities.
The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act 2014 says the committee will issue vending certificates to hawkers, rehabilitate them and take penal measures against errant traders.
In New Town, the two teams will record the location of the pavement grab stalls by photographing them.
Location pins on mobile app-based maps will also be placed to create a map that will show the exact places where the hawkers have set up stalls, the official added.
Apart from this, the teams will also conduct surveys regarding the rehabilitation of hawkers and oversee the temporary hawkers’ markets in New Town.
This newspaper on several occasions has reported that in New Town, walkways, several sections of main roads, service lanes and bicycle lanes have fallen prey to hawkers’ carts and vans.
According to the official, one of the teams has been formed to cover areas that fall under Action Area I. The other will move around in areas under action areas II and III.
“As there are more residents and population density is higher in Action Area I as compared to II and III the number of stalls and shacks here is higher,” the official added.
Apart from keeping a vigil on encroachments, the teams will also survey the existing hawkers in New Town to rehabilitate them.
Once the teams complete the survey they will submit a report and the map based on which NKDA officials will modify or change the main rehabilitation plan and roadmap for hawkers if needed.
