Waterlogging and eviction drives are disrupting daily business for street vendors across Guwahati
For most residents of Guwahati, monsoon waterlogging means delayed commutes, traffic snarls and hours of inconvenience. For the city’s street vendors, however, every spell of rain carries a much heavier cost. Flooded roads keep customers away, perishable goods go unsold, and a day’s income can vanish within hours.
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Adding to their woes are the Guwahati Municipal Corporation’s (GMC) eviction drives across different parts of the city. While these drives aim to reclaim footpaths for pedestrians and create safer, walkable public spaces, they have also left many roadside vendors uncertain about where they can continue earning a living.
The situation presents a difficult urban dilemma. On one hand, pedestrians have the right to safe and obstruction-free footpaths. On the other, thousands of families depend on street vending as their only source of income. As Guwahati grapples with recurring waterlogging and rapid urban development, the challenge lies in balancing these two equally important concerns.
At Hatigaon, one of the city’s waterlogging hotspots, fruit vendors say even a brief spell of rain is enough to disrupt business.
“This entire stretch of Hatigaon remains submerged under water even after a short spell of rain,” said a fruit seller. “Our sales drop significantly. On a normal day I earn around ₹2,000, but on rainy days I barely earn ₹400 or ₹500. Customers do not come because they themselves are struggling to move around. Most of the time, I simply close my shop and go home.”
For vendors dealing in perishable goods, every unsold item translates into a direct financial loss. Fruits exposed to prolonged moisture deteriorate quickly, leaving little chance of recovering the investment made earlier in the day.
The story is no different at Birubari Tiniali, where roadside vendors face similar challenges every monsoon.
A vegetable seller said that even after a short spell of rain, the area gets submerged, making it difficult for both vendors and customers.
“Footfall comes to a standstill, and sales become almost nil. I somehow try to protect my shop so that it doesn’t get washed away. On a normal day I sell vegetables worth around ₹3,000, but during rain my sales fall to nearly ₹1,000,” the vendor said.
Unlike businesses operating from permanent establishments, street vendors often have little protection against flooding. Most rely on temporary sheds, plastic sheets and makeshift platforms to keep their goods safe.
Yet, rising water levels frequently reach their stalls, threatening not just their merchandise but also their source of livelihood.
Tea stalls, often considered a refuge during rainy weather, are also witnessing the opposite effect in waterlogged areas.
At Six Mile, a tea stall owner said heavy waterlogging discourages commuters from stopping by.
“Usually, passers-by stop here for tea. But during waterlogging, nobody stops. People remain stranded and face a lot of trouble themselves. Because of that, our sales also drop significantly,” the owner said.
For vendors who survive on daily earnings, the consequences extend beyond a single day’s loss. Many purchase fresh stock every morning using borrowed money or credit from wholesalers. When goods remain unsold due to rain, they are left with debt but no income to repay it.
Their struggles, however, do not end with the monsoon.
Several vendors expressed frustration over repeated eviction drives carried out by the Guwahati Municipal Corporation.
Asked whether they receive any support from authorities during periods of waterlogging or financial distress, the vendors said they have received none.
“There is no such support from any authority. In fact, GMC comes every now and then to evict us. Where do we go? We don’t have enough money to rent a shop. During the monsoon we already face severe losses, so we are left with no choice,” they said.
Over the past few weeks, the GMC has intensified eviction drives in several parts of Guwahati to remove encroachments from roads and footpaths. The civic body’s objective is to improve pedestrian mobility, reduce congestion and reclaim public spaces that have long been occupied by illegal structures and roadside vendors.
Urban planners and civic activists have repeatedly stressed the importance of walkable footpaths, particularly in a growing city like Guwahati. Safe footpaths are essential for schoolchildren, senior citizens, persons with disabilities and thousands of pedestrians who use them every day. The Supreme Court's recent recognition that the right to walk safely on a demarcated footpath forms part of the fundamental right to life has further strengthened the case for reclaiming pedestrian spaces
Yet, the issue is far from straightforward.
For many street vendors, these same footpaths are workplaces that have sustained their families for years. Most cannot afford to rent commercial shops, and relocation often means losing regular customers and daily income.
The conflict, therefore, is not simply between encroachment and enforcement. It is between two legitimate public interests, the right of citizens to safe, accessible footpaths and the right of economically vulnerable vendors to earn a livelihood.
The solution does not lie in choosing one over the other, but in creating designated vending zones, strengthening Town Vending Committees under the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, and ensuring that rehabilitation accompanies eviction drives wherever possible.
Waterlogging further complicates this debate.
Even vendors who continue operating after eviction often relocate to low-lying areas where waterlogging again affects business. Thus, while the city works towards becoming cleaner and more pedestrian-friendly, the absence of adequate vending spaces and recurring flooding continue to place street vendors in an increasingly vulnerable position.
For the fruit seller at Hatigaon, the vegetable vendor at Birubari Tiniali and the tea stall owner at Six Mile, every monsoon is a reminder that survival depends not only on the weather but also on urban planning decisions beyond their control.
As Guwahati prepares for another season of heavy rainfall, the conversation cannot remain limited to drainage systems and traffic management alone. It must also include the thousands of informal workers whose livelihoods are shaped by the city’s streets.
Building walkable footpaths is essential for a modern city. Equally important is ensuring that those who depend on street vending are not left without alternatives.
The challenge before Guwahati is not deciding whether pedestrians or vendors matter more. It is finding a way for both to coexist in a city that is safe, accessible and economically inclusive.