Gurugram: Having already faced a lot of embarrassment over a sozzled cop dancing on the city road, another grave allegation has been levelled at the conduct of Gurugram police officials. Steet vendors at MG Road have written to Gurugram Police Commissioner of how not only are they being harassed but also certain constables are stealing items from them.
After the written complaint, the Gurugram top cop has assured action and initiated investigations into the matter. Sources in the Gurugram Police claim that this may also be the ploy by the street vendors to not allow the policemen to act tough against them. Owing to encroachments in crowded areas of the city, the Gurugram police is forcing the street vendors not to put their stalls in such places.
In order to check the encroachment by street vendors, the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) had ambitious plans to earmark specially designated places for the street vendors. Yet, two years after the plans were mooted, various limitations and protests have prevented the plans to kick off. The implementation as of now can be witnessed in the Solitaire Complex at the Old Delhi road.
Even though there were plans to have this strategy implemented in other market areas, protest by the market owners forced the officials to withdraw it.
The result of this failure has been that encroachment by street vendors continue to be a major challenge in the city. Taking cognizance of the problem, senior officials are still mulling over how the street vending policy can be put into force effectively. For long, there have been complaints that prime areas, footpaths are being deliberately taken over in the city.