SHILLONG: Faced with abrupt displacement from their long-standing vending spots, street traders across Shillong voiced their anger on Thursday after Shillong Municipal Board (SMB) officials conducted a site inspection at the Anjalee parking lot.
The government’s plan to relocate vendors from key commercial zones—including Them Iewmawlong, Motphran, Bimola, Wahthapbru, and Umsohsun—into a pre-existing parking lot has drawn sharp criticism from working-class vendors, who feel targeted by heavy-handed administrative decisions.
Vendors expressed outrage at being squeezed into an already congested site, calling the move a deliberate attempt to trample on the rights of small earners while ignoring broader civic issues. They questioned why authorities are forcing poor traders into a cramped parking area, rather than offering a viable, spacious location like Stand Jaïaw.
Vendors also highlighted the contradiction of clearing public buses from Anjalee to make way for hundreds of hawkers, leaving transit logistics unaddressed.
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Many described double standards in policy enforcement, noting that while street sellers are displaced without notice, the government has failed to relocate residents at Them Iewmawlong despite years of promises.
The vendors demanded that the government resolve the situation at Them Iewmawlong first, clear the area, and allow local vendors to operate there rather than banishing them to distant or unsuitable sites.
They also criticized administrative inaction regarding social safety, pointing to the unchecked rise of drug abuse at Lum Survey.
Calling for equal treatment and accountability, the vendors urged the government to stop crushing everyday workers while protecting influential interests, and reiterated their united rejection of any attempt.
(4FrontMedia news)
