Besant Road hawkers in Vijayawada on tenterhooks after receiving eviction orders

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Of 257 hawkers doing business on Besant Road in Vijayawada, only 57 have valid documents, suggests a survey report. File. | Photo Credit: The Hindu

The hawkers doing business on Besant Road in Vijayawada are staring at uncertainty after receiving the eviction order from the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) on Saturday.

For more than ten years, the owners of business establishments and hawkers have been jostling for space on the busiest market road of the city. While the shop owners pointed out that the road remains choked with unauthorised pushcarts, the hawkers argued that Besant Road had been their source of livelihood for years.

On April 23, 2025, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed in the High Court, highlighting the “chaotic situation” on Besant Road and seeking orders directing the officials to take action against the illegal hawkers. As part of this, a survey was conducted in the municipal corporations across the State to identify registered hawkers.

While this was underway, in July 2025, the Division Bench of the High Court ordered that “no further licences should be issued to street vendors anywhere in the State till there is a plan in place prepared in accordance with the provisions of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014”.

After the survey report was submitted, the February 2026 order of the Bench directed the VMC Commissioner to initiate action to ensure that only the licensed vendors are permitted to operate on Besant Road. Out of 257 hawkers identified here, only 57 had valid documents and some others produced them later.

Following the orders, the VMC issued showcause notices to 170 vendors in April and gave 30 days, in accordance with the A.P. Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Rules, 2017.

After finding that many of them do not have Certificates of Vending (CoV) and identity cards, the VMC issued eviction orders to these vendors on Saturday.

According