On September 15, 2025, Visakhapatnam City made a disgusting change under the large-scale anti-enclosure initiative of Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC).Operation Life for Urban Green Space (Lung) 2.0.“Once fully stirred and buried under the remains of steel, shattered wooden panels, and disintegrated stalls and shops on commercial roads. The city’s pulse-its vibrant road markets, food courts and business hubs-which migrate with their livelights.
Also read: GVMC encroachs 1,053 in Visakhapatnam in two days
The corporation’s claim to revive the urban places of the city was soon with resistance as a protest by the displaced road vendors, which joined the workers’ unions and members of the Left parties. By 10 am, they gathered near the Mahatma Gandhi statue opposite the GVMC office, the city’s famous protest site, and were soon rejected against the Hawa Corporation and the State Government, “accusing them of snatching livelihood in the name of urban beautification.”
In the crowd. Geeta was, sitting on her lap with her six -year -old daughter. Geeta and her husband had been running a tiffin stall in Kanchrapalem for eight years, but now their world fell overnight, he said with tears in their eyes. “We have a bank loan to repay. Every day we clean 1,000 loans, in addition to school fees, domestic expenses and bills. Now where we will get the money? How we are going to live or do the government want us to end our lives,” he questioned.
Also read: GVMC stopped Operation Lung for Dasra
Tiger, who was evicted, many emotionally shattered vendors begs the authorities for relief, while others hurried to clean their belongings, before the economists started their work. The most affected area was allegedly the city’s popular night food court on Old Jail Road. A movement hub, which began with about 30 to 40 food stalls, has increased over time to about 180 stalls, allegedly unauthorized most unauthorized.
Saying that GVMC’s expulsion drive killed licensed vendors, Sri Srikanth, a graduate, who was driving a licensed food truck, said, “Instead of working with unauthorized vendors, GVMC has excluded 40 licensed people. Our case has been pending in court, yet they have removed us after public security and cleanliness?”
Even though the GVMC has not released an official number, the workers’ unions estimate that at least 10,000 families have been directly or indirectly hits financially or indirectly because the expulsion drive has begun.
After the GVMC, the vendors destroyed their belongings and destroyed the shops on small scale as part of ‘Operation Langs 2.0’ at Sithammadhara in Viskapatnam. , Photo Credit: V. Raju
All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) leader P. Ramna demanded that the GVMC immediately turn off the drive. “For the last few days, thousands of poor families have been forcibly destroyed by the GVMC. We are not against development, but against the unethical treatment of these vendors who were not given time to make alternative arrangements. We want the footpaths to be free, but why the vending zone is there?
Many women vendors asked if it was the Dasara gift of the government. Gita’s sister -in -law Vasanthi, who attended the protest site, said that she had a sugarcane juice stall in Sithammadhara. In the knee voice, he asked, “Have we asked for” Amma Vodi “or” Free Bus Ride “schemes? The government announced many welfare schemes to help women, but has destroyed our only means of earnings. What are these plans if our income has gone away?”
Saying that the GVMC did not give any prior notice, Ms. Vasanthi alleged, “Claimed by GVMC as no notice was given to us. They did not give us time to make alternative arrangements or set the shop in a different place. Not even a day was given. The loan and investment were not given.
Others echoed her pain, especially older women who said they were fighting not only for their livelihood, but also for their dignity. The 55 -year -old Padma stood under his call for justice, holding a plank under the sunshine sun. He shared that his son had passed away twenty years ago, and since then, he had retained himself by running a tea stall in the Concarrapalem. “This was the only source of my income and they took it away. I alone live in a rented house, now what will I do,” she cried.
However, the eviction drive received mixed response from the residents. While some welcomed crowded roads and open pavements, others felt another solution that could not kill the livelihood of the poor.
A retired army officer, B. Raja Rao said, “The old gel road is finally peaceful. First, I see that the children are free from any kind of smell near the park and the wind is free from any kind of smell. Earlier, due to the waste of food, due to the waste of food, the smell attracting stray dogs and cattle is also good. However, their friend N. Ramesh had a different opinion,” Yes, the food was poor, but these foods were poor, but these foods were poor. Did. Even I often visited these food courts with my family because my children enjoy street food. “Questioning the drive, he asked,” Why can’t GVMC regulate them instead of evicting them? “
Supporting the drive, AP Federation for Resident Welfare Association (APFERWAS), including Uday Shirname and KSR Murruty, said the move will reduce traffic accidents and improve security. However, he also insisted that the GVMC would have to set the appropriate vending zone quickly to displace.
Meanwhile, human rights activists slammed eviction as illegal and unconstitutional. HRF’s vs Krishna said that the Street Vendor (Security of Street Vending and Regulation) Act, 2014, impose restrictions on such arbitrary tasks. Until a proper survey is conducted, vendors cannot be removed and vending certificates are issued. “Without notice or making alternative zones, eviction is illegal and GVMC is violating a lot of law to protect these people,” Shri Krishna said.
‘Political fault’
The campaign expressed political displeasure in the state, in which the opposition accused the coalition government of targeting the poor in front of the Dasra Festival.
YSRCP District President KK Raju alleged that the drive was a deliberate conspiracy. He said, “The government operated the drive, while the MLA was occupied with assembly sessions and corporators were far away on study tourism. However, the responsibility is now being passed between the mayor and the GVMC commissioner,” he said.
The move was allegedly criticized by the ruling party corporators and MLAs, who expressed their displeasure with the high command of the party. Visakhapatnam South MLA Vamasikrishna Srinivas strictly condemned the move and promised to push for relief measures.
A street vendor saves his car and other items after the Anti-Enchocruting Drive of GVMC at Sithammadhara in Visakhapatnam. , Photo Credit: V. Raju
Jana Sena Party (JSP) General Secretary Bolisati Satyanarayana highlighted the provisions of the Street Vendors Act that saves the vendors from eviction and allows them to reach schemes like PM Sawidhi loan and insurance. He demanded transparent licensing through regulated models such as fixed operating hours, strict hygiene standards, waste disposal rules and tenders.
Accusing large -scale irregularities in the stall collection, he said, “About 25lakh was being collected every month from 240 stalls on the jail road, and about ₹ 50 lakh out of 1,750 stalls elsewhere. The government would have to fix this money and clean the system.”
GVMC says, it is necessary for public health
GVMC Commissioner Ketan Garg said that “Operation Langs 2.0” was required for public health, pedestrian safety and smooth traffic flow. “Encroachments have forced pedestrians on busy roads, creating hurdles and rising accidents. Many stalls sell unnatural foods that cause health hazards.” Operation lungs 2.0 “is about cleaning people, reducing congestion and making the city safe and protecting people.”
Rehabilitation
GVMC assured that steps are being taken to rehabilitate the eligible vendors. Project Director of GVMC’s Urban Community Development (UCD) Wing, M. Satyavani said, “We are identifying eligible vendors and creating vending opportunities. The corporation has already submitted 21 vending zone options to the government, but as they will not be enough, more and more are being identified.
The project director appealed to the vendors and the public not to believe in rumors or misunderstandings about the operation. He told Hindu, “Following the orders of the GVMC Commissioner, Town Planning and UCD officials have been in the process of installing things for vending zones. Perhaps, it may take a few weeks.”
Meanwhile, according to GVMC officials, the city saw a significant increase in the number of road vendors in the last five years, especially after the Kovid -19 epidemic. A senior GVMC official said that during the epidemic, many small -scale shops emerged daily to meet the demand for essential things such as grocery items, fruits and vegetables. This trend gradually contributed to the increase in street vending.
Today, hundreds of street food stalls, tiffin centers and other kiosks in the city, many of which work with roads and pavements. GVMC officials estimate that around 18,000 street vendors are currently recognized in its jurisdiction.
