Shacks gone but shackles on convenience

Noida: That neighbourhood vegetable seller has been fulfilling your daily needs and the parathawala round the corner has been a relief for many a young professionals returning home with an empty stomach at night for years.
Which is why the Noida Authority’s drive to evict such illegal vendors has left residents divided — while many agree the removal of encroachers is needed for improving security and traffic flow in the city, some also feel inconvenienced because there aren’t enough markets in the vicinity of many Noida sectors to support people’s daily needs.
Several residents told TOI that the Noida Authority should have ensured setting up commercial vending zones in the sectors before removing unathorised hawkers. For, it is these unathorised vendors who fulfil most of Noida’s daily needs, they said.
With the Authority embarking on the anti-encroachment drive, residents complained they have to travel a few kilometres to markets in other sectors even if they have to buy a piece of brinjal.
Shiv Kumar Tiwari, president of Sector 122 RWA, said there were only two makeshift utility shops in the area. But they, too, were razed by the Authority on August 19 as part of the drive.
“We now have to travel at least 1.5km to the markets in sectors 119 and 120 for our daily needs such as bread, vegetables and milk. The Authority is yet to develop any commercial zone in the sector. They should not have done away with these makeshift shops. After all, they were the only source of our daily utilities,” he said.
Tiwari added that the RWA had written multiple letters to the Authority seeking a shopping centre, but was yet to receive any response.
With the real estate boom across Delhi-NCR, many people bought flats and houses in Noida over the years, but registered shops and outlets failed to keep pace with the demands. Moreover, the absence of any shopping centre in the vicinity gave rise to these unathorised vendors and with time, people started depending on them for their daily needs.
In many areas, these illegal shacks were the only source of food for students and young professionals.
Residents of Sector 71 said they were yet to get a shopping centre in 20 years. Flat owners here have to go all the way to Kanchanjunga market in Sector 53 to buy vegetables and other essentials or depend on the weekly markets put up by street vendors.
“Our sector has a designated space for commercial zone, but it has not been built in over 20 years. We keep writing to the Authority, but to no avail. We have asked for some temporary kiosks to be developed. It is not convenient for everyone to go the Kanchanjunga market — 2km away — for every small need,” said Sunil Wadhwa, a member of the Sector 71 RWA.
Students and young professionals in sectors 62, 63, 125 and 88 are also feeling the pinch. Office-goers who do not bring food from home said the removal of street vendors had affected them badly. Some of them said they even had to skip lunch on a few occasions.
In other sectors, which have shopping centres, residents have welcomed the Authority’s drive.
“Most buildings in our area have markets and these vendors illegally occupy road space. They have been a breeding ground for criminal activity and people don’t feel comfortable passing by these stalls at night. Some vendors are even aware of personal details of families living in nearby societies. The Authority must allocate a dedicated space for registered vendors,” said Abhisht Suman, a resident of Sector 137.
The Noida Authority said it had started the process of identifying areas for registered vendors. “Five sectors were finalised on Sunday. More are in the pipeline. The process should be completed by September,” said Avinash Tripathi, OSD at the Authority.