A seemingly impressive title rotting away in the midst of what is now one of New Delhi's most unregulated, unlawful, disgustingly rancid and nauseating areas. The market, unfortunately plagued by unauthorized hawkers peddling pirated hardware and software alike, attracts a crowd of approximately 2 lakh people from Delhi and its surrounding regions on a daily basis and generates around Rs. 10 crore
annually by a conservative measure. Such figures more than warrant basic hygiene and safety protocols but the reality falls short of these protocols by eons, which seems to be a classifier for infrastructure in New Delhi these days (barring the uber awesome Delhi Metro of course). The following five associations have joined forces in an attempt to battle the shameful condition of the Nehru Place Market, something that should be a shining example of India's growth and relevance in the global economy -
- Nehru Place Improvement and Welfare Association (NIWA)
- All Delhi Computer Traders Association (ADCTA)
- Export Fabric Suppliers Association (EFSA)
- Computer Media Dealers' Association (CMDA)
- Progressive Channels Association of Information Technology (PCAIT)
PCAIT drafted a memorandum for Shri Tejendra Khanna, the Lt. Listed below are the issues, verbatim as per the memorandum -
Quote"
- Dilapidations of the floor and of the exterior of all the buildings there.
- Rotten and foul smelling filth everywhere, accumulated in some areas over years.
- Scores of shouting shoe-polishing persons seated everywhere in the common area.
- Every space adjacent to any Building in Nehru Place is a public urinal.
- A cluster of hawkers numbering around 700, most of them not covered in the list of Court-Stay. Almost every one of them is a hired servant of the so called owner of that shop and a member of Manushi Sansthan who owns similar shops all over Delhi and make a killing and could give a good share of it to the seekers and hence assured of perennial permission to hawk. Obstruction to movement of visitors and Nehru Place staff by the presence of unauthorized hawkers on ground and first floors
- Chaotic and with complete lack of security Nehru Place is a sitting duck for any type of calamity.
- And what to mention about the huddled Parking mess all over." Unquote
The Government ignored the issue, which is why Nehru Place vendors will be observing a very Gandhian 'Token Bandh' and peaceful protest on February 1st, 2012. As Mr. Krishnan, Executive Secretary of PCAIT pleaded - Gandhi protested during the British Raj. What a shame it is that we must protest under our own Raj!
