Authorities have failed to relocate hundreds of street vendors from some of the main busy thoroughfares in the capital city despite court orders, leaving woes of pedestrians and drivers to fester.
The street vendors and hawkers have for long encroached uponpedestrian pathways and many parking spaces, causing immense difficulties tocommuters by hampering smooth movement of traffic and walkers.
The Jammu and Kashmir High Court had ordered the authoritiesto remove all street vendors from roads and footpaths by May 2019.
Vendors can been seen occupying parking spaces and pathwaysin parts of city like Dalgate, Hari Singh High Street, Amira Kadal, Gonikhan,Batamaloo and other busy areas in the city.
Many commuters say that due to the encroachment of roadsidesthey are left with no place to park and as a result they have to face action bytraffic police repeatedly.
“A few days back my vehicle was ceased at Dalgate by trafficpolice as there is no space left to park safely. SMC should relocate thevendors so that neither vendors nor common people suffer,” said Tariq Ahmed, acommuter.
The officials at Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC)however blame the “unwillingness” of street vendors to move todesignated places as the main hindrance.
Head of the SMC anti-encroachment wing, Ashraf Warsi saidthat in compliance to court orders they have identified five places in Srinagarcity for rehabilitation of street vendors “but the unwillingness ofvendors to relocate is creating problem.”
“On daily basis, I along with my team work overtime toremove the vendors but within half an hour they move back to the same place,”Warsi told Greater Kashmir.
“I admit that it is creating a huge problem at certainplaces in city but we are trying our best.” Warsi said a drive to remove streetvendors was being carried out on a daily basis.
“We had to face assaults during the drive and at manyinstances we have to call the police,” he said.