A year on, permanent shed for street vendors lies vacant in Ludhiana

The location of the shed, outside vegetable market near Jalandhar bypass, sparked objections from vendors

A permanent shed, built at a cost of ₹9 crore, earmarked for street vendors has been lying vacant for over a year. The market committee had built the shed to relocate vendors and provide them with better facilities.

Newly built shed by mandi board lying vacant from past one year in Ludhiana . (Manish/HT)

However, the location of the shed, outside vegetable market near Jalandhar bypass, sparked objections from vendors. They argue that moving the carts in the area will result in significant losses for them due to a decreased footfall.

An official from the mandi board said that although there are over 2,500 carts in the vegetable market, only 772 permanent sheds have been constructed. Vendors have also pointed out that the newly built sheds suffer from a shortage of space, making it difficult for them to relocate.

Officials said that out of the ₹9 crore, the sheds accounted for ₹4.53 crore. The project included constructing boundary walls, inter-locking tiles on the road, electrical work, sheds, platforms, sewage connections and water supply.

Nirmal Singh, a member of the Rehri Fari Association, said, “We have submitted a written request to the officials to allocate the sheds that commission agents of Potato use to us as they are inside the vegetable market. Shifting to the sheds outside would lead to losses as we would bear the transportation costs of carrying fruits and vegetables after purchasing them from commission agents.”

Amarvir Singh, general secretary of the Punjab State Fruit and Vegetable Commission Agents Association, said, “The newly built shed does not have enough space to accommodate all the vendors at the market. The state government should have conducted a meeting before its construction and the shed should have been built inside the market.”

However, people have started living in the empty sheds. Every day activities, such as cooking, damage the premises.

Relocating the carts to the permanent sheds would provide several advantages, such as protection from rain and access to electricity, water, and toilet facilities.

Market committee secretary Harinder Singh said, “I recently joined the committee and will discuss the issue with higher authorities. I will hold a meeting with the association to resolve the matter.”