Kannur Corpn. proceed with the beach street sales plan

The Kannur Corporation will go ahead with its plan to remove street vendors from Payyambalam beach after the monsoon, citing public health concerns over the spread of communicable diseases. The corporation will rehabilitate genuine street vendors and issue them licenses, Mayor P. Indira said. Speaking to The Hindu, the mayor said that unsanitary conditions at roadside food stalls have become a major problem, especially during the rainy season when maintaining food hygiene is difficult.

She said the company would hold a meeting with UDF representatives before implementing the decision. As a first step, closed and abandoned beach stalls will be removed from Friday.

The mayor said that all roadside stalls would eventually be shifted after the monsoon. Vendors identified as genuine street vendors would be rehabilitated on the beach premises. The company has already prepared a preliminary list of authorized dealers and plans to issue licenses to them. She estimated the number of actual sellers to be fewer than 30.

The mayor said that based on widespread irregularities in the existing street vending system, many operators were paying between ₹600 and ₹800 a day to individuals who were allegedly encroaching on public land and renting out premises illegally. She argued that the system has largely become a benami operation, with only a small number depending on street vending as their primary source of livelihood.

According to the mayor, the company would extend all legal benefits and support to genuine street vendors. She said the rehabilitation plan envisages a unified and organized outlet at Payyambalam beach. However, the relocation will be done only after the monsoon as maintaining hygienic food preparation and sales would not be feasible even for responsible vendors during the rainy season.

The mayor said the corporation is also following a proposal announced in the previous budget to introduce mini air-conditioned buses connecting major tourist destinations within the corporation’s limits.

“The proposed service is to reduce the number of private vehicles entering the city and improve connectivity between tourist attractions including Payyambalam beach, fort area, Ezhara beach and temple tourist circuits. Since the roads leading to Payyambalam are narrow, only minibuses are considered suitable,” she said.

She said preliminary negotiations had been held with the Regional Transport Authority and that the proposal would be more actively pursued after the monsoon. The company is currently conducting a feasibility study to determine the operating model before preparing the project. “Although budgetary measures have already been taken, the project has not yet reached the implementation stage,” she said.

The mayor said that the corporation aims to introduce post-monsoon service with an emphasis on employing women as bus staff.

Published – 03 Jul 2026 0:01 IST