MCC to issue identity cards to 66 street vendors on November 1

MCC to issue identity cards to 66 street vendors; District Minister to attend function. 900 applications received; process to identify 3 vending zones per ward. 400 vendors applied for cards for vending zones. MCC health staff raided 9 soda stalls, no fines collected. Animal Birth Control programme on, 100 street dogs sterilised/month.

The Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) will present identity cards to 66 street vendors, who have pushcarts, at a function to be held in Mangaluru on November 1. District in-charge Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao will participate in the function, said Mayor Sudheer Shetty Kannur on Friday, October 27.

Talking to reporters after his phone-in programme, the Mayor said the identify cards have details of residential areas where the street vendors have to operate. These vendors are permitted to sell the articles using their pushcarts in the designated areas. These vendors have to be on the move and cannot stop or sit in an area and sell their articles, he said.

MCC Commissioner C.L. Anand said as many as 900 applications were submitted for issuance of identity cards. After processing those applications, identity cards were given to 66 pushcart street vendors.

Mr. Anand said process was on to identify about three street vending zones for each of the 60 wards of Mangaluru city. These zones will have temporary shelters and other basic facilities for vendors. Separate identity cards will be issued to vendors, who will sit and sell their products in the vending zones. As many as 400 vendors have applied for identity cards for operating in these vending zones, he said.

On complaints about poor hygiene at the “Matka” soda stalls, which had come up during in the Kudroli Temple Fair, Mr. Anand said these stalls were new ones seen in the fair. The MCC health staff were quick to raid nine stalls and seize the material. “As these vendors were poor, we did collect any fine from the them,” Mr. Anand said.

Expressing concern over complaints on street dogs reported from areas namely Ashok Nagar, Kadri kambla, Shaktinagar and Kadri Park, Mr. Kannur said MCC is working out a better solution. Animal Birth Control programme was on and about 100 street dogs undergo sterilisation every month, the Mayor said.