Shillong, Jul 22 : Shillong Municipal Board authorities on Tuesday carried out an eviction drive in the Khyndailad area here in compliance with the Meghalaya High Court’s orders.
During the drive, the authorities confiscated goods and dismantled stalls of street vendors who were operating without valid certificates of vending (COV).
Acting on a state government directive that set a deadline (July 22) for all unauthorised vendors to vacate the area, the Shillong Municipal Board (SMB) officials had been verifying vending permits for the past few days.
“Only those vendors who were able to produce valid COVs were allowed to continue operating. The rest had their stalls removed and materials seized,” an SMB official at the site told PTI.
The action follows directions from the Meghalaya High Court, which had pulled up the state government and municipal authorities for failing to regulate street vending, especially in congested commercial zones such as the Khyndailad area, the city centre.
As part of its continuing oversight, the high court also appointed a special officer to monitor compliance and implementation of vending regulations.
The officer has been tasked with overseeing the identification and development of designated vending zones, ensuring transparency in the issuance of certificates of vending, and submitting periodic reports on the progress of implementation to the Court.
In line with the court’s order and the provisions of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, the state government has identified three designated vending zones in the city.
These are located at the MUDA Complex, the parking lot opposite the SBI Main Branch at Khyndailad, and at the old Meghalaya Transport Corporation (MTC) building.
The vending zone at MUDA Complex will cater to a large section of central Shillong vendors, while the space opposite SBI is being redesigned to accommodate walk-in customers and maintain smooth traffic flow.
The old MTC building is being repurposed to create structured vending spaces with basic amenities for relocated vendors.
Officials said work is underway to operationalise these zones, with plans for phased relocation of authorised vendors in the coming weeks. (PTI)
