Well, almost

No hawkers in JS Complex!

Jayanagar MLA BN Vijaykumar's initiative to evict the hawkers in Jayanagar has taken off in real earnest, after the interaction meet organised recently by the Federation of Jayanagar Welfare Association with Sri Shankar Bidari, Bangalore City Police Commissioner. A number of senior citizens had appealed to the Police Commissioner for immediate action on this front, and on the very next day, things started moving with 90% of the hawkers evicted on 9th and 10th Main and in the surroundings of JS Complex. 
For the very first time, the shoppers in JS Complex have been spared the nuisance from the hawkers for the last three weeks. But the hawkers complained that they had been forced out of the footpath, and are now forced to eke out a existence in the footpaths. For the last 25 years, we have been earning our livelihood by selling our wares in the footpath and now our very existence is threatened, where else can we go, said a hawker who is the only breadwinner in his family. Pleading for a more humanitarian response, he said henceforth they would occupy only a small part of the footpath, keeping in mind the needs of the pedestrians and overall hygiene of the place. Moreover, they would be selling only in the evening from 5 to 9 pm, he said and added that if the authorities did not agree to their pleas, over 100 families would be ruined.
Another hawker alleged favoritism by the authorities, saying, a few of the hawkers were still seen near the water tank, and Janata Bazar surroundings. He also pointed out that there were several people selling on the pavements in 9th Block, which was also not legal. If the authorities are really serious, they should evict all hawkers without exception, and then relocate everyone at a separate place, so that we will be able to survive and take care of our families, he said. If this was not done, the hawkers would be going on hunger strike in front of the JS Complex and appealed to the Jayanagar MLA to intervene in their behalf and rescue their families from penury. 
When TWB sought the response of the MLA, Vijaykumar reiterated that the hawkers would not be allowed to be a nuisance to the people, and at the same time maintained that he was working with the police to identify a suitable place for the hawkers to conduct their business in an orderly manner, like had been done in Delhi. 

The residents though are happy with the development and said it was for the first time that the JS Complex was rid off the hawkers. In the past, there have been many instances where the hawkers were evicted but each time they returned within a few days. Will they do a repeat this time? For the present, the MLA and the Police Commissioner deserve kudos for succeeding in doing something that has not been done before. They have withstood the pressure for the last three weeks. Only time will tell who wins this battle in the end. "Once the hawkers slip in the daily mamool to the cops and some of the business establishments, it could be business as usual," said, the owner of one of the oldest shops in the JS Complex. So keep your fingers crossed, and watch your step while you shop in the Complex!