Law, Regulations and Rights of Street Vendors: Ahmedabad

From the preface: This working paper forms part of the research project, Making Space for the Poor: Law, Rights, Regulation and Street-Trade in the 21st Century, awarded to Cardiff University under the joint programme funded by the UK’s Economic & Social Research Council and Department for International Development (UK-Aid) (ESRC/DFID Awards RES-167-25-0591). The research is based on an international comparative study of different cities, and draws on a rights-based perspective to explore the impact of law, regulation and policy on the informal economy with a focus on street vendors. The research hypothesis is that the urban informal economy operates in a fragmented and plural regulatory environment, with conflicts between formal and informal regulatory systems that exacerbate risks, vulnerabilities and exclusions of the working poor. Understanding and addressing the risks and conflicts is crucial to developing an enabling, pro-poor regulatory environment. This working paper reports the findings of a review of legislation, legal cases, and key informant interviews undertaken in 2011, to identify the main legislation under which street vending in Ahmedabad operates, and the extent to which conflict within the law affects street vendors. This paper reminds us not to rest on our laurels after advocating

for a national level Model legislation for the street vendors, as there is a long path ahead in making street vendors visible in urban economy and getting them their due right in legal and planning world.

This paper is Working Paper 16 in the CUE Working Papers Series. More information and other related research papers are available on the website of the Center for Urban Equity at CEPT University.