Pune: PMC plans to establish dedicated roadside markets modeled after Delhi’s Palika Bazaar, featuring parking facilities, after failing to deal with increased presence of illegal hawkers.“Eight locations are being finalised across the civic areas,” PMC standing committee chief Shrinath Bhimale said.Bhimale, who represents the Market Yard area in PMC, said there was a plan to establish such a market in the Market Yard area. “The vendors who occupy the space at footpaths or roadside will be shifted to the designated location. Similar steps will be taken up in the city’s other areas in a phased manner,” he said.Residents have, however, raised serious doubts if PMC’s plan would help handle the problem of illegal vendors. Anup Joshi of Satara Road said, “PMC came up with various drives to restrict the presence of illegal vendors on footpaths, but the problem persists.”Swapnil Mankar, who often travels via FC Road, said footpaths along FC Road and in Deccan Gymkhana area were always occupied by illegal vendors. “There are a few authorised vendors too. PMC’s earlier attempts to shift vendors to designated areas failed to work. There is a need to take up sustained drives,” Mankar said.Bhimale said the action against illegal vendors would continue. “We will ask the administration to intensify action against those occupying footpaths illegally,” he added.
