West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday gave hawkers across the state a major reassurance, announcing that no hawker anywhere in West Bengal will be evicted from their stalls or carts until this year's Durga Puja in October. The assurance came during a meeting at the state secretariat, Nabanna, with Asit Saha, the state president of the Joint Action Committee of hawkers.
What Asit Saha said after the meeting
Speaking to reporters once the meeting ended, Saha said the Chief Minister's assurance had finally put an end to the climate of fear that had gripped hawkers across the state over the threat of eviction. According to Saha, Adhikari made clear on humanitarian grounds that not a single hawker would be removed from their spot until this year's Durga Puja. Saha added that the Chief Minister also took note of the difficulties faced by hawkers running their businesses at railway stations or on land owned by the railways, and promised to raise the issue with the Indian Railways department so that a solution could be found for them as well.
Key meeting on rehabilitation set for next week
To decide on rehabilitation for hawkers and chart future policy on the issue, the hawkers' organisation is set to hold an important meeting next week with the secretary of the state's municipal affairs department. That meeting will go into detail on issuing identity cards to hawkers and on the future of their businesses. With the Chief Minister's assurance that no eviction drive will run until October, lakhs of hawkers and their families across the state can finally breathe easy.
Eviction drives had been running since the new government took charge
Since the new government led by Suvendu Adhikari took power, several eviction drives had been carried out against hawkers at various railway stations across the state, and notices had also been served to hawkers in some markets. These actions had left hawkers facing severe hardship in earning their livelihood, prompting them to repeatedly demand rehabilitation. The state government's latest announcement is being seen as a major relief for the hawker community.
