Kochi Corporation Council divided over bringing vending bunks under Street Vendors Act

Roadside bunks have to be treated as street vendors, while those on revenue puramboke land should be allotted numbers and treated as shops, says the Mayor.

The Kochi Corporation Council remains divided over whether vending bunks rented out by the civic body should be brought under the ambit of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014.

Differences surfaced among political parties when the renewal of licences for bunks, as recommended by the finance committee, came up for discussion at the council meeting on Friday (October 30, 2026).

Mayor V.K. Minimol called for a special meeting, to be attended by representatives of bunk operators and street vendors, to arrive at a decision on the issue. “Roadside bunks would have to be treated as street vendors, while those on revenue puramboke land would have to be assigned numbers and treated as shops,” she said.

BJP councillor Priya Prasanth warned that separate treatment for bunks and street vendors could lead to legal complications in the future as the Street Vendors Act is already in force in the Corporation. “Roadside bunks come under the definition of street vendors and should fall within the designated vending zones. Bunks were originally allotted solely as a means of livelihood. However, many beneficiaries have improved their financial position over the years, and the bunks are no longer their primary source of livelihood. Hence, it is important to insist on annual affidavits from bunk operators,” she said.

UDF councillor P.D. Martin, however, disagreed, maintaining that financial betterment alone should not be the grounds for depriving beneficiaries of their right to operate bunks.

LDF parliamentary party leader V.A. Sreejith said the bunks had been allotted using the Corporation’s Plan funds and called for a judicious approach that would not adversely affect genuine beneficiaries, including persons with disabilities. Any decision on the matter, he added, should be taken in consultation with bunk operators’ and street vendors’ associations.

Corporation secretary P.S. Shibu said the civic body had allotted a total of 115 bunks, of which 13 had developed defects. UDF councillor Henry Austin said it was important to collect data on bunks other than those accounted for by the Corporation and called for a policy to govern the sector.

UDF councillor and finance standing committee member M.G. Aristotle called for a uniform framework for both bunks and street vending units to ensure efficient governance and improve aesthetics. He urged the town planning committee to come up with a proposal. He also pointed out that several bunks had been found to have been sublet, which is illegal.