Govt provides loans to street vendors while MCD’s anti-encroachment drive threatens livelihoods
PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
The government is providing financial assistance to street vendors to help them become self-reliant. However, in Dehradun, vendors operating roadside carts are facing repeated anti-encroachment drives by the Municipal Corporation of Dehradun (MCD). This has raised a key question: where are vendors supposed to operate after taking loans to purchase their carts.
Rs 11.61 crore disbursed to 6,807 vendors under PM SVANidhi, questions also raised over the implementation of vending zones.
According to figures released by the MCD on Tuesday, Rs 11.61 crore has been disbursed to 6,807 street vendors under the Pradhan Mantri Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) scheme. A total of 8,096 eligible applications were received, of which 6,886 loans were sanctioned. As many as 4,068 vendors have repaid their loans.
Despite receiving financial assistance, vendors say that the lack of suitable spaces to conduct business remains a major challenge. They allege that municipal teams regularly conduct anti-encroachment drives against roadside carts, disrupting their businesses. Vendors also claim that carts and goods are seized during these operations. Some have alleged that they are asked to pay money to retrieve seized belongings, although these allegations have not been independently verified.
Street vendor Rahul Kumar said that municipal teams arrive almost every week, forcing vendors to remove their carts. He alleged that if a cart is seized, vendors have to pay money to get it released.
Under the PM SVANidhi scheme, eligible vendors can receive loans of up to Rs 15,000 in the first tranche, Rs 25,000 in the second and Rs 50,000 in the third, subject to eligibility and repayment conditions. However, complaints persist that designated vending zones are not yet fully operational. The MCD now faces the challenge of balancing encroachment removal with the need to provide vendors with designated spaces.
