SHILLONG: Pedestrians in the city finally got their foothold on sidewalks after the hawkers were evicted following a High Court order.
Hawkers had been encroaching on every footpath in the city making it a daunting task for pedestrians to dodge their way through street vendors and speeding vehicles on the road. Now with the footpaths free of the vendors, residents are finding it easier to commute and are thankful to the court for the verdict.
The market at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Square on Jail Road is back to its glory. Prior to the court verdict, this place was enveloped by vendors from this square down to Sadaya Charan Das Lane meeting their counterparts in the Polo junction. The stretch was one of the worst affected.
A resident from this area said he would often lose his way in the past and “seek for a path like stepping stones”. The vendors were also littering the area.
Another such area was the civil hospital junction where one side of the entrance gate was taken over by food sellers. The now cleaned up footpath was a bustling food corner where pedestrians enjoyed their dishes sitting on benches laid down on the footpath. The only time when these vendors were not seen was during a visit by VVIPs from Delhi.
People can also hangout freely now in Police Bazar that earlier turned into a hawking zone every evening. Vegetable vendors, fast food and fruit sellers would lace the footpaths putting pedestrians in a spot. But only a few complained as roadside food was a lure.
Another trend post the court order was that of increased number of mobile vendors selling vegetables and fruits in bamboo baskets. The number of these vendors is expected to increase in the days to come.
