Vendors’ stir from today

SHILLONG, Jan 23: The Meghalaya Greater Shillong Progressive Hawkers and Street Vendors’ Association (MGSPHSVA) will stage a sit-in demonstration outside the office of the Shillong Municipal Board starting Friday.
The decision to demonstrate followed the expiry of a two-day deadline the association had set for the provisional Town Vending Committee (TVC) to convene a meeting to discuss their issue. The association wrote to the office of the provisional TVC to hold the meeting or face a stir.
“The provisional TVC has not responded to the association’s letter on Tuesday seeking an emergency meeting within two days. As stated in the letter, they will go ahead with the sit-in demonstration outside the SMB office,” social activist and MGSPHSVA member, Angela Rangad said.
The association is demanding the immediate withdrawal of the public notice issued by the non-existent TVC and cancellation of all actions taken by it, starting from the process of claims and objections and the creation of an eligible list of hawkers and street vendors to be issued vending certificates.
The association said the electoral college of eligible vendors should elect their representatives to a legally mandated TVC.
Earlier, MGSPHSVA president Biolin Pyrtuh said the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood Street Vending) Act of 2014 was implemented illegally and in a non-participatory manner.
“The notice purportedly issued by a TVC is a serious breach. Please note that there is no TVC to date, only a provisional one. The Governor has been wilfully misled into signing a notification and we hope that the High Court of Meghalaya is also not being misled,” she said.
“We called for an emergency meeting of the provisional TVC within two days of receipt of our letter to discuss the points placed before the provisional TVC,” she said, adding that the provisional TVC is not a legally sanctioned institution to notify vending zones, order relocation, or approve street vending plans.