Relief for Mumbai hawkers till May 2007

New Delhi, Feb 12 (UNI) In a major relief to Mumbai hawkers, the Supreme Court today directed the Maharashtra government as well as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to permit licenced as well as non-licenced hawkers operating in the hawking zones to continue till May 2007.

A bench comprising Justices H K Sema and B Sudarshan Reddy directed the authorities to finalise their licensing policies for hawkers and street vendors by the end of May 2007.

The court also directed the licenced hawkers operating in non-hawking zones be shifted to hawking zones, making it clear that no such activity would be permitted in the non-hawking zones.

The court, however, permitted unlicenced hawkers operating from hawking zone to continue till the policy is finalised by the state government.

Today's ruling comes on a batch of petition filed by the Maharashtra Ekta Hawkers Union and others, and would bring relief to about 23,000 hawkers.

The hawkes are spead all over the state.

UNI