Street vendors meet Shinde, seek end to harassment

An organisation of street vendors today urged the government to issue a moratorium on police action against them and stop their alleged harassment.
The demands were placed before Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde by the National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI) members who met him today.
"We have urged the Home Minister to urgently intervene to ensure end to harassment of street vendors and extortion of money from them by police and municipal authorities in Delhi," National Coordinator of NASVI Arbind Singh told reporters after meeting the Home Minister.
Singh said they demanded a "moratorium" on all action against the street vendors and setting up of a street vendors' grievance redressal cell in the Delhi Police headed by a police official of the rank of DCP.

The NASVI conveyed to the Home Minister that despite Parliament enacting the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act and the Supreme Court of India directive to ensure no eviction of street vendors till their settlement, police and municipal agencies in Delhi have continued their alleged harassment and eviction of vendors from several markets.
The street vendors' body urged Shinde not to provide police support to the municipal authorities raiding street vendors and issue written instruction to all three municipal corporations in Delhi and the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) to follow the Supreme Court order.

"The Home Minister assured us that a meeting comprising representatives of Delhi Police and three municipal corporations of Delhi and NDMC will be held tomorrow to discuss the demands of the street vendors," Singh said.