Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has said that a drive against road-side vendors will be initiated by the government. He has reportedly asked senior police officials to remove encroachments on the highways in the form of make-shift stalls selling various commodities including helmets.
The chief minister asserted that all such sales along the highway will be restrained except for sale of local vegetables.
It is pertinent to note that besides the make-shift stalls, there are also several handcarts selling fruits and tender coconuts along the highway. These are mostly migrants who even sell fruits from the back of the tempo and open-rickshaws. There need to also be a ban on handcarts, open rickshaws and tempos selling fruits by the roadside besides the make-shift stalls. Such stalls can prove dangerous to road-users as vehicles may stop so that the occupants of the vehicle can make some purchases. These parked vehicles can be an obstruction to the smooth flow of traffic and even lead to accidents.
