Implement Policy Safeguarding Small Shop Owners from Hawkers' Menace: MLC Satyajeet
MLC Satyajeet Tambe urged the government to bring about and implement a policy safeguarding small shops and establishment owners from the menace of illegal hawkers spread across the state, especially in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, and Nashik districts
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Mumbai, Mar 12: MLC Satyajeet Tambe urged the government to bring about and implement a policy safeguarding small shops and establishment owners from the menace of illegal hawkers spread across the state, especially in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, and Nashik districts. He raised a calling attention motion at the Legislative Council during the Budget session on Tuesday.
Tambe said, "Small business owners buy properties after a lot of hard work and efforts. They diligently pay their due rent, bills, and taxes while bearing other overhead costs. However, illegal hawkers take control of the road ahead of their shops and eat into their earnings. Their businesses get severely affected. Besides, the hawkers affect the traffic movement and create a law and order situation."
Tambe said small business owners pay a huge amount of GST and go through the whole tax system process. "What will the government do to secure small business owners and shop owners? Is the government going to safeguard their interests, and will there be an independent machinery set up to tackle the phenomenon and give relief to the small business owners?" asked Tambe.
Tambe said the hawkers' policy has been in place since 2017, but its implementation is extremely haphazard and completely irresponsible. He also said the government spent Rs 30 crore to build a hawkers' plaza in Dadar. "However, no hawker uses the plaza. Instead, they choose to do business on the road," he added.
Responding to Tambe, MoS for Urban Development of Maharashtra Madhuri Misal said the procedure is on, and a plan will be set in place where all the questions will be answered and management will be in place wherein the hawkers as well as small shops and establishment owners will be taken care of.
Tambe said that the response given by the Minister was technical and legal but did not clarify how the government will implement and find solutions to the issue at hand.
Misal said the implementation is handled at the civic body level. "Feedback will be taken from these civic bodies as to how the zones can be set up. Based on that, we shall carry out the implementation," she stated.
