Matunga locals claim BMC's hawking pitches selected randomly

Residents of M Lotlikar Road in Matunga (East) submitted their objections on 57 hawker pitches under their ward, F North, and alledged that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided on the hawking pitches arbitrarily. They claimed that the civic body has proposed hawking pitches in select roads while many roads remain untouched. Residents said that the BMC has proposed around 2,193 hawker pitches in just 40 roads of the ward, while 65 per cent roads in the area remain untouched.

Nikhil Desai, one of the residents, said, "As per the BMC, there 174 roads in the ward and around 116 are major where the hawking pitches can be proposed." Residents alleged that this will create traffic and other problems in the area.

According to the residents, the civic body did not carry out a survey before deciding the pitches and claim there is no consistency in the selection of roads. "The Dr BR Ambedkar Road starts from Byculla under E ward, passes through Parel under F South ward and reaches Matunga (East) under F North ward. Shockingly, E and D wards have chosen the road for hawking pitches in Byculla and Parel while the F North ward in Matunga, not a single hawking pitch was proposed," said Desai, who is also coordinator of AGNI NGO.

Residents suggested that the hawkers, particularly vegetable and fruit sellers, could be shifted to a municipal market in the area. "The Lal Bahadur Shashtri Municipal Market which is just opposite Matunga railway station was given to vegetable and fruit sellers but they rented out the space to mobile repair and clothes shops," said Anurna Mailk, another resident.

A senior BMC official said that the civic body was in the process of going through each and every suggestion received for the pitches, and that the BMC will verify all the 1,660 suggestions in three stages to ensure that not a single pitch is dropped on false suggestions.

AGAINST BMC

• Residents submitted objections on 57 pitches
   
• They claim BMC has proposed 2,193 pitches on 40 roads, alleging it has proposed pitches only on select roads
   
• They allege the BMC did not carry out a proper survey before deciding pitches