Creating a Supportive Entrepreneurial Ecosystem for Street Vendors: The Case of the National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI)

Abstract

Like many other emerging economies, India has made steady progress towards social and economic development since liberalization. However, poverty and inequality continue to be critical social challenges, driving the poor to seek employment in the informal sector. A significant proportion of the working age population is employed in the informal sector as street vendors or informal entrepreneurs. In the early years after liberalization, street vendors lacked legal and social status and therefore were unable to protect themselves from the harassment by authorities. They could not access critical resources like credit and training. As a result, they remained poor while the rich benefitted from the liberalized regime.

The National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI) emerged as a response to the street vendors’ predicament. Through tireless advocacy, it helped create a better entrepreneurial ecosystem for street vendors and thereby improve their quality of life. This paper will describe what NASVI did to build an entrepreneurial ecosystem and the outcomes of its initiatives so far. It will conclude with some ideas about how the entrepreneurial ecosystem for street vendors could become sustainable.

The first author is grateful to Mr. Arbind Singh and Ms. Sonal Sinha of the National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI), New Delhi, India for their support and for sharing data for writing the case.

Appendices

Annexure 1

1.1 Elements of National Policy for Urban Street Vendors

• Reflect the spirit of the Constitution of India on the right of citizens to equal protection before the law as well as right to practice any profession, trade, business or occupation.¹¹

• The duty of the State is to strive to minimize the inequalities in income and to adopt policies aimed at securing that the citizens have the right to adequate means of livelihood as enshrined in article 38(2), 39 (a) and 41 of the Constitution. Procedure to regulate such right of street vending when reasonable restriction is warranted in public interest.

• States must organize Town Vending Committees (TVC), adopt a participatory approach and supervise the entire process of planning, organization and regulation of street vending activities. They must facilitate the implementation of socio-economic policies for the street vendors. They must delegate authority to local municipal bodies to frame necessary rules for identification of street vendors/vending zones and for implementation of policy. All matters related to street vendors like, i-card, vending zones, eviction, survey, should be decided by TVC only.

• The TVC should make a committee [Headed by a woman official] to take into account the Domestic Violence Act, 2005 and also a committee to be formed under Vishakha Guidelines against Sexual Harassment at workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, Redressal) Act 2013 – it will lead to a new mechanism of protecting women from sexual harassment for informal sector. Grievance Redressal Forum should be developed to help the dissatisfied in a meaningful way.

• City/town master plans need to recognize the need for developing vendor market/outlets and weekend markets and make provisions for creating new vending markets. They must provide street vendors with civic facilities for appropriate use of identified places for vending markets.

• Street vendors must be given a legal status by formulating an appropriate law and thereby providing for legitimate vending/hawking zones in the city/town master plans. Ensure that the laws are enforced. Recognize the fundamental right of street vendors to carry on trade and business mentioned in Article 19 (1)g on street pavements, public places and land belonging to state and union governments.

• Promote access of street vendors to such services as credit, skill development, housing, social security and capacity building.

• Promote organizations of street vendors to facilitate their collective empowerment.

Annexure 2

1.1 Elements of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act

The Act aims at creating a conducive atmosphere where street vendors, are able to carry out their business in a fair and transparent manner, without the fear of harassment and eviction.¹²

• (i) The Act provides for constitution of a Town Vending Authority in each Local Authority, which is the fulcrum of the Act, for implementing the provisions of the Act.

• (ii) In order to ensure participatory decision making for aspects relating to street vending activities like determination of natural market, identification of vending zones, preparation of street vending plan, survey of street vendors etc. the TVC is required to have representation of officials and non-officials and street vendors, including women vendors with due representation from SC, ST, OBC, Minorities and persons with disabilities. It has been provided that 40% members of the TVC will be from amongst street vendors to be selected through election, of which one-third shall be women.

• (iii) To avoid arbitrariness of authorities, the Act provides for a survey of all existing street vendors, and subsequent survey at-least once in every 5 years, and issue of certificate of vending to all the street vendors identified in the survey, with preference to SC, ST, OBC, women, persons with disabilities, minorities etc.

• (iv) All existing street vendors, identified in the survey, will be accommodated in the vending zones subject to a norm conforming to 2.5% of the population of the ward or zone or town or city.

• (v) Where the number of street vendors identified are more than the holding capacity of the vending zone, the Town Vending Committee (TVC) is required to carry out a draw of lots for issuing the certificate of vending for that vending zone and the remaining persons will be accommodated in any adjoining vending zone to avoid relocation.

• (vi) Those street vendors who have been issued a certificate of vending/license etc. before the commencement of this Act, they will be deemed to be a street vendor for that category and for the period for which he/she has been issued such certificate of vending/license.

• (vii) It has been provided that no street vendor will be evicted until the survey has been completed and certificate of vending issued to the street vendors.

• (viii) It has also been provided that in case a street vendor, to whom a certificate of vending is issued, dies or suffers from any permanent disability or is ill, one of his family member i.e. spouse or dependent child can vend in his place, till the validity of the certificate of vending.

• (ix) Thus the mechanism is to provide universal coverage, by protecting the street vendors from harassment and promoting their livelihoods.

• (x) Procedure for relocation, eviction and confiscation of goods has been specified and made street vendor friendly. It is proposed to provide for recommendation of the TVC, as a necessary condition for relocation being carried out by the local authority.

• (xi) Relocation of street vendors should be exercised as a last resort. Accordingly, a set of principles to be followed for ‘relocation’ is proposed to be provided for in the Act, which states that (i) relocation should be avoided as far as possible, unless there is clear and urgent need for the land in question; (ii) affected vendors or their representatives shall be involved in planning and implementation of the rehabilitation project; (iii) affected vendors shall be relocated so as to improve their livelihoods and standards of living or at least to restore them, in real terms to pre-evicted levels (iv) natural markets where street vendors have conducted business for over 50 years shall be declared as heritage markets, and the street vendors in such markets shall not be relocated.

• (xii) The Local authority is required to make out a plan once in every 5 years, on the recommendation of TVC, to promote a supportive environment and adequate space for urban street vendors to carry out their vocation. It specifically provides that declaration of no-vending zone shall be carried subject to the specified principles namely; any existing natural market, or an existing market as identified under the survey shall not be declared as a no-vending zone; declaration of no-vending zone shall be done in a manner which displaces the minimum percentage of street vendors; no zone will be declared as a no-vending zone till such time as the survey has not been carried out and the plan for street vending has not been formulated. Thus the Bill provides for enough safeguards to protect street vendors interests.

• (xiii) The thrust of the Act is on “natural market”, which has been defined under the Act. The entire planning exercise has to ensure that the provision of space or area for street vending is reasonable and consistent with existing natural markets. Thus, natural locations where there is a constant congregation of buyers and sellers will be protected under the Act.

• (xiv) There is a provision for establishment of an independent dispute redressal mechanism under the chairmanship of retired judicial officers to maintain impartiality towards grievance redressal of street vendors.

• (xv) The Act provides for time period for release of seized goods, for both perishable and non-perishable goods. In case of non-perishable goods, the local authority is required to release the goods within two working days and incase of perishable goods, the goods shall be released the same day, of the claim being made.

• (xvi) The Act also provides for promotional measures to be undertaken by the Government, towards availability of credit, insurance and other welfare schemes of social security, capacity building programs, research, education and training program etc. for street vendors.

• (xvii) The Act provides for protection of street vendors from harassment by police and other authorities and provides for an overriding clause to ensure they carry on their business without the fear of harassment by the authorities under any other law.

• (xviii) The Act specifically provides that the Rules under the Act have to be notified within 1 year of its commencement, and Scheme has to be notified within 6 months of its commencement to prevent delay in implementation.

Annexure 3

Membership, savings deposited and loans availed by members of the Sanchay Thrift and Credit Cooperative Society across three districts of Bihar where the Cooperative is presently operational: 2001–2016.¹³

Year	Individual members (excluding self-help groups)a	Savings (rupees) deposited by individuals and self-help groups (percent growth over preceding year)	Savings (in US $)b deposited by individuals and self-help groups	Loans (rupees) availed by individuals and self- help groups (percent growth over preceding year)	Loan (in US $) availed by individuals and self-help groups from cooperative
2001–2002	886	Rupees 02,63,880	US $ 3951.54	Rupees 01,64,020	US $ 2456.16
2002–2003	1372 (35%)	06,97,696 (165%)	10,447.83	07,32,817 (346%)	10,973.76
2004–2005	2340 (70%)	19,88,182 (65%)	29,772.56	20,72,551 (182%)	31,035.97
2005–2006	2115 (−9.5%)	27,80,131 (40%)	41,631.81	32,53,757 (57%)	48,724.25
2006–2007c	3141 (48%)	41,91,824 (50%)	62,771.59	49,55,834 (52%)	74,212.46
2007–2008	4170 (33%)	47,11,416 (12%)	70,552.36	62,80,551 (27%)	94,049.79
2008–2009	5017 (20%)	47,66,467 (01%)	71,376.73	65,65,130 (4%)	98,311.29
2010–2011	7090 (41%)	73,15,867 (53%)	109,553.41	84,23,308 (28%)	126,137.08
2011–2012	9769 (38%)	116,02,516 (59%)	173,744.98	126,19,096 (50%)	188,968.03
2012–2013	11,817 (20%)	187,36,763 (61%)	280,578.67	159,01,181 (26%)	238,116.49
2016 Sep	14,037 (19%)	265,60, 856 (41%)	397,742.64	140,00,000 (13.5%)	209,646.74

1. ^aSource: Sonal Sinha, NASVI, pers. comm. 2017
2. ^bIndividual members are largely street vendors and their family members. Self-help groups have about 15–20 members each. There were 792 self-help groups across the three districts of Bihar by end 2016
3. ^cUntil this year, expansion was largely confined to Patna district. After this year the Cooperative expanded to another two districts of Bihar