Editorial
Hawkers' rehabilitation
A timely and laudable step
We welcome the decision of the government to provide the evicted hawkers of the capital city with specified areas to restart their business before the onset of the month of Ramadan. We believe it is a timely and a laudable step that should be implemented by the city authorities at their earliest. And the decision to issue ID cards against about 12 thousand city hawkers, we feel, will make them easily identifiable in case of any law and order situation.
We believe the decision, emanating from a meeting between the adviser, Local Government and Rural Development (LGRD) and hawker leaders, will help resolve a crucial problem that has been haunting this government ever since.
There is a tendency amongst some quarters to assess hawkers as a nuisance group but we believe such an appraisal is done without ever looking into the fact that their value addition to commodities has substantial bearing on the overall economy of the country. These self-employed men and women demonstrate admirable entrepreneurial spirit with a very small capital, and they generate plenty of selling and buying activity to keep the currencies circulating. There is a common observation that in a way they also contribute to keeping the prices of goods in the shopping malls in check.
While appreciating the steps to give the displaced hawkers a place to carry on with their trade and commerce for subsistence, we expect the city authorities to provide them with toilet and electricity facilities, and protection from toll collectors. The patrolling policemen must also be told about their importance and given instructions to treat them with compassion. On this note we would like to suggest the relevant authorities to consider the possibility of creation of a body in the line of a board, like Hawkers Development Board, to bring them under the fold of a unified authority. This would help them avail small credit, channel grievances and seek legal help in an official manner.
But we believe no facility should come without responsibilities. Once given a place to run their business the onus to keep the premises clean and orderly will rest on the hawkers. They must also ensure that motorists and common pedestrians are not subjected to harassment or intimidation by any member of their community.
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