The street women vendors in Imphal : The challenges and prospects
- Part 1 -

Grace Kamei *

Street Vendor shifted to Lamphel Super Market on May 02 2011 :: Pix - Hueiyen News

Who are street vendors? It is broadly defined as a person who offers products for sale to the public without having a permanent built-up structure from which to sell goods. The street vendors may be stationary in the sense that they occupy space on the pavements of other public/private spaces or, they may be mobile in the sense they move from place to place by carrying their wares or push carts or in basket on their heads.

Manipur state comprises of five hill districts and four valley districts which occupy a total geographical area of 22. 327 sq. km. Total population of Manipur as per 2011 census is 28,55,794 of which male and female are 1,438,586 and 1,417,208 respectively. In 2001, total population was 2,293,896 in which males were 1,161,952 while females were 1,131,944. The total Scheduled Tribe population returned in Census 2011 is 9, 02, 740. In terms of proportion, the Scheduled Tribe population constitutes 35.1 % of the total population. The proportion during the last Census was 34.2%.

Manipur considered as one of the city which have a good model of street vendor market in India. Even though, Manipur also have an unending problem due to increasing number of vendors and limited space for vending in the Imphal. Imphal city is the main market area for the entire district both hill and valleys in Manipur where maximum sellers and consumer are well concentrated.

Thousands of women vendors come from their respective district to sell their goods in the main bazaar of the Imphal. There is unending cases for inhumane treatment of vendors by police, collection of money and so on. For the last couple of year, there is an increasing trend of agitation of street vendors for unequal treatment of licensed and non-licensed that used to sit in the same place before the construction of the new buildings, Ima Keithel in the same place. All these arose due to lack of proper management of by Municipal authority of the state.

Increase of street vendors in Imphal

There are substantial increased in the number of street vendors in the Imphal city. There are three main causes for the growth of street vending in Imphal:

(i) The lack of gainful employment coupled with poverty in rural areas has pushed people out of their villages (hill district) in search of a better existence in the cities. Theses migrant do not possess the skills or the education to enable them to find better paid, secure employment in the formal sector and they have to settle to work in the informal sector.

(ii) The poverty compelled women to be vendors.

(iii) Lack of development and good market system in hill district forced tribal women to settle down in valley to sell their goods as street vendors. These tribal women have no rooms or market shed to sell their goods comfortably in the main bazaar, therefore they become time to time street vendors thus face different types of challenges in adjusting in Imphal city.

Today, vending is an important source of employment for a large number of urban poor as it requires low skills and small financial inputs. The government of India has used the term 'urban vendor' as inclusive of traders and service providers, stationary as well as mobile, and incorporate all other local/region specific terms used to describe them.

The street vendors sells many goods, such as food items, vegetables, clothes, fruits, seasonal items etc. who have no other channels of marketing the products that they produce. They also ensure the availability of goods and services at cheaper rates to people.

Working condition of street vendors

The street vendors have been in existence since ancient times. In moderns times we find that street vendors are rarely treated with the same measure of dignity and tolerance. They are targeted by municipalities and police in the urban areas as illegal trades, the urban middle class complains constantly on how these vendors make urban life a living hell as they block pavements, create traffic problem and also engage in anti-social activities.

For most street vendors, trading from the pavements is full of uncertainties. They are constantly harassed by the authorities. A municipal raid is like a cat and mouse game with municipal workers chasing street vendors away while these people try to run away and hide from these marauders.

Besides theses sudden raids, street vendors normally have to regularly bribe the authorities in order to carry out their business on the streets. All these mean that a substantive income from street vending is spent on greasing the palms of unscrupulous authorities or to private money lenders. In fact in most cases street vendors have to survive in a hostile environment though they are service providers.

Street vendors are poor social protection and their conditions on the streets expose them to a variety of safety and health issue. They face harassment either from Municipal Cooperation or police or both. Police take ransom from the vendors who do not have license to sit. Therefore their protection is the issue.

The challenges of tribal women vendors

The tribal women vendors' concentration areas are at Khuman Lampak, Nagaram, Dingku road, Chingmeirong, Lamphel etc and it has increased the number of tribal women street vendors. These women vendors have no proper market shed till now therefore they occupy most of the Khuman Lampak road, pavement etc and also at Lamlong bazaar to sell their products.

The tribal women who come down to Imphal city to sell their goods face double problems, since there is no proper market shed in the main market place they become a street vendors to sell products at Khwairaband market in a bid to supplement the family income. Also selling goods at roadside has been facing rain and heat throughout the year.

There is a complaint from licensed street vendors to those non-licensed vendors who are selling vegetables have affected their business tremendously as street vendors prevent the customers as they sell vegetables on the street. Moreover, traffic police drives them away, throw out their goods mercilessly on the street; they have been enduring such difficulties.

There is no other option but to endure the inconveniences. Further, since there is no proper shelter home for women from hill districts, they could not sold their goods in a good rate rather give away at cheaper rate for whole sale just to go back home before dawn. These minimize their income and thus remain poor.

To be continued.....