Patna: Data released by the National Association of Street Vendors of India (Nasvi) revealed that Bihar has over 2 lakh street vendors across 49 cities, with Patna having the highest concentration of approximately 40,000. While 47% of vendors statewide possess certificates of vending and 45% have accessed PM SVANidhi loans, institutional gaps still persist and also their legal protection.Nasvi released this data at a state-level workshop on the “Current status and empowerment of street food vendors” on May 1, which identifies Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, Gaya and Purnia as other high-population centers for street trade, while Arwal, Jehanabad and Khagaul report the lowest numbers.Although 16 cities, including Patna, Sasaram, Jehanabad and Muzaffarpur, have established vending zones, 33 out of the 49 surveyed towns have no designated areas for vendors. Urban local bodies in cities such as Madhubani, Saharsa, Madhepura, Araria, Khagaul, Danapur and Kishanganj cite inability to provide land as the primary reason for this shortage.Nasvi state coordinator for Bihar-Jharkhand, Shyam Shanker Deepak, said in Patna alone, only 23,800 vendors possess a vending license. Research findings show that 70% of the state’s vendors are male while remaining female, with the trade dominated by vegetable sales at 45%, followed by food at 18%, fruits at 15% and others at 22%.The condition of vendors remains unstable due to enforcement practices where the majority receive no prior notice before eviction, said Deepak. Arbitrary removals are frequent, and fines often exceed Rs1,000. While town-level federations exist in 90% of areas, effectiveness is limited by irregular meetings and low participation rates.The program was inaugurated by mayor of Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC), Sita Sahu, deputy mayor, Rashmi Chandravanshi, and Nasvi national coordinator Arvind Singh. Sahu emphasized PMC’s plans to establish at least one vending zone in every ward, requesting vendors to identify potential land to move the process forward.
