Only 14,000 street vendors apply for govt aid of Rs 1,000

A Chennai Corporation official said that the one-time relief amount has been deposited to most of the 14,000 street vendors, who had sent the application. The civic body had launched an online portal for the street vendors for filing applications.

“We did not receive a significant number of applications through the online portal. So, we asked vendors in person to apply for the relief amount. We collected details of the vendors through WhatsApp. Some vendors submitted applications at zonal offices in person,” the official added.

When asked the reason for around 9,000 street vendors opting out from availing the benefit, the official explained that the civic body had sent postcards to the vendors explaining the benefit and added that the civic body could not trace several vendors. “This might be due to the vendors returned to their home towns,” he said.

Even though around 14,000 applications have been received and the money deposited to most of the vendors, civic could not deposit the relief to several vendors owing to mismatches in registration details and bank account details.

Meanwhile, a street vendor in Kodambakkam said that he did not hear about the cash benefit and opined that Rs 1,000 is very less when compared to the loss he faced during the two months of lockdown.

Before the pandemic, the civic body was demarcating vending and non-vending zones in a move to regulate street vending but the exercise was stopped after COVID-19.