Shillong street vendors protest over licence revocation, allege bias

Street vendors, including indigenous women, on August 1, staged a protest outside the Shillong Municipal Board (SMB) office. They have alleged arbitrary revocation of vending licences and biased allotment of stalls at the newly designated vending zone.

The women, under the banner of the Meghalaya and Greater Shillong Progressive Hawkers and Street Vendors Association (MGSPHSVA), demanded a review of the relocation process carried out by the SMB and the Urban Affairs department.

The vendors accused authorities of excluding several genuine local hawkers, particularly Khasi women, from the final list of beneficiaries, while stalls were allegedly allotted to non-local vendors.

Protesters carried placards and submitted a memorandum seeking redressal.

"Our names were there in the survey, and we even received vending certificates. But now our names are missing, and others have taken our place," said one of the protesting vendors.

The protest follows a July 29 order of the Meghalaya High Court, which disposed of a PIL on vendor relocation, observing that the government had complied with the court's directive to shift certified vendors from Khyndailad to the vending zone at the MUDA Parking Complex by July 22.

According to officials, 407 vendors were identified through a formal survey. Of them, 311 received Certificates of Vending (CoVs), and 282 stalls at the MUDA complex have already been occupied.

The relocation is part of the implementation of the Meghalaya Street Vendors Scheme, 2023.

However, vendors at the protest alleged that the final list of beneficiaries was never published publicly, and many certified vendors were excluded without notice.

They demanded a halt to further evictions and a transparent reassessment of stall allotments.

Angela Rngad, leader of the civil society group Thma U Rangli-Juki (TUR), speaking on behalf of MGSPHSVA, warned that the protest may intensify if the Town Vending Committee (PTVC) is not convened immediately to address the grievances of vendors whose CoVs were revoked despite being eligible.

She alleged that the Shillong Municipal Board had bypassed the PTVC and issued or revoked vending licences in an arbitrary manner, potentially favouring certain individuals.

"This must go through the PTVC with proper documentation to prevent corruption or bias," she said.

Rngad said many legitimate vendors are still awaiting CoVs and questioned the lack of transparency in determining vendor eligibility.

She also raised concerns about alleged irregularities in the construction and allocation of stalls at the vending zone.

The association has demanded a review of the vending zone plan and rationalisation of vendor spaces, especially for small-scale sellers such as betel nut or water vendors.

The hawkers have resolved to continue their sit-in protest until the SMB agrees to hold a PTVC meeting.

Under the relocation plan, each certified vendor is eligible for a Rs 10,000 one-time assistance and a Rs 2,000 monthly support for five months to help them re-establish their businesses at the new site.

The High Court has scheduled the next hearing on pending concerns, including licence revocations, on August 5.