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Shops in Sarojini Nagar, parts of central Delhi likely to be shut till 2 pm
All markets in central Delhi will remain shut till 2 pm on Tuesday as traders’ associations have decided to protest against government for not removing hawkers.
All markets in central Delhi will remain shut till 2 pm on Tuesday as traders’ associations have decided to protest against government for not removing hawkers.
A strike called by the NDMC area market federation will affect Connaught Place, Khan Market, Sarojini Nagar Market, Palika Bazaar and Janpath Markets, among others.
The strike may affect the plans of shoppers ahead of Karvachauth on Wednesday. Married women in north India fast from dawn till moonrise on Karvachauth. They apply mehndi as well as buy traditional food items for a pre-dawn feast and other essentials for the festival usually a day before. Market associations, however, said all shops in these markets will open only later in the day.
The member associations will march till the NDMC headquarters from Palika Bazar demanding proper implementation of a high court order on removal of unauthorised hawkers.
Read: Delhi govt asks agencies to not remove street vendors till Diwali
“We demand removal of unauthorised hawkers from footpaths, walkways, pedestrian paths, public passages, No Hawking, No Vending and No Squatting Zones of Lutyen’s Delhi. We also plan to march peacefully to present a memorandum to the NDMC chairperson seeking the implementation of the honourable court order in its true spirit,” Atul Bhargava, president of Connaught Place Market Association, said.
Municipal authorities had carried out eviction drives after Delhi High Court on October 5 asked the three municipal corporations, NDMC, and Delhi Cantonment Board to remove illegal hawkers from all pavements, footpaths, and Metro station areas designated as no-vending zones prior to the Street Vending Act, 2014. The Delhi government, however, issued an order on October 10 asking the civic agencies not to evict the street vendors in the festive season.
The market associations held a joint meeting on Saturday while final decision on the strike was taken on Monday.
