Planning for street vending on cultural sites: A case study of Varanasi

Abstract

Street vendors or hawkers as they are more widely known, have been around for as long as civilization. There has never been a city — ancient or modern — that did not have traders vending their wares informally in public spaces. Indian cities are no exception. Street vendors are an integral part of urban economies in Indian cities, offering easy access to a wide range of goods and services in public spaces. One of the most important spaces in Indian context where the role of street vending is practicing traditionally and can’t be ignored its importance on Cultural sites. It is believed that integrated part of system when consider about cultural spaces. It not only provides the goods and items which is going to use in rituals or worship, but also provides a sense of place when anyone entering into cultural premises. The study attempts to explain role and importance of street vending on cultural sites through the analyzing identified parameters. The socio- economic condition and their present situation assessed through the study, the problems faced by vendors and the protection of their livelihood through different policy level decisions made by government. Study also analyzes the spatial movement of street vendors on cultural sites through Time use analysis, through which movement and zoning identified with in certain timeframe. The study explored the opportunities for creating cultural spaces more vibrant by creating spatial and policy level provision for integrating the vending activities into the cultural spaces in existing urban fabric with certain framework using the time sharing of spaces and guidelines and on other side the protection of livelihood and optimizing livelihood opportunities for street vendors which is vending of cultural sites