Supreme Court orders PCMC to protect street vendors

The Supreme Court has instructed the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) to keep the current situation of street vendors unchanged. This decision is in place until PCMC finishes a process to accommodate these vendors. The order came after a petition from the Maharashtra Pheriwala Krantikari Mahasangh, a group representing the vendors. They complained that PCMC did not conduct a survey or issue vendor certificates. As a result, many vendors were labeled illegal and faced action during PCMC's anti-encroachment efforts. The court noted there are about 19,792 street vendors, with around 15,013 eligible for certificates. The court has ordered PCMC to report on its progress within a week. A senior official from PCMC confirmed no action would be taken against the vendors for now, and issuing certificates would be prioritized. The survey had been postponed in 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last October, PCMC held elections for a street vendor committee and began issuing vendor certificates. So far, they have issued documents to 1,098 vendors. They have also identified 42 designated areas in the city for street vendors, which can accommodate about 5,500 people. Kashinath Nakhate, the president of the vendors' organization, welcomed the Supreme Court's decision as a relief for many street vendors who faced enforcement actions.