Church Street Residents Write to Minister Over Returning Footpath Encroachments

Residents and shoppers in Bengaluru's Church Street are facing persistent footpath encroachments as street vendors routinely return days after civic eviction drives, forcing pedestrians into narrow road spaces alongside pushcarts and stalls. In response, Sanjay Kumar, president of the Church Street Residents Welfare Association, has written to Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda and the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) seeking immediate intervention and sustained enforcement.

According to the residents' association, civic eviction operations clear the pavements only temporarily. Vendors typically vacate the stretch when complaints are lodged with the GBA, but set up their stalls again within one to two days. The association has also called for an official inquiry into alleged leaks concerning planned enforcement operations, claiming vendors are tipped off to remove their carts before inspection teams arrive and return as soon as the officials leave.

Footpaths along Church Street are currently occupied by vendors selling jewellery, clothing, and caps, alongside various eateries that draw heavy pedestrian footfall. Similar conditions have been reported on Commercial Street and its connecting roads, including Ibrahim Sub Street. On these stretches, pushcarts and displayed merchandise block pedestrian paths, creating severe bottlenecks whenever motor vehicles pass through.

Shoppers reported that clearance drives initially allowed people to walk comfortably and browse storefronts without having to step into vehicular traffic. However, the quick resurgence of vendors has left minimal walking space, causing auto-rickshaws and cabs to avoid entering the smaller connecting roads and forcing passengers to alight farther away.

Both shoppers and local residents have urged authorities to establish designated vending zones rather than relying solely on repeated evictions. They stated that dedicated vending spaces would protect pedestrian movement and traffic flow while safeguarding the livelihoods of hawkers who need places to operate.

Encroachments are not limited to mobile hawkers. An Infantry Road resident noted that established brick-and-mortar shopkeepers also routinely obstruct roads and footpaths by placing inventory, display stands, carts, and advertising billboards outside their premises. Residents have urged the GBA to step up enforcement by confiscating obstructing goods, issuing penalties, and sealing commercial establishments that ignore repeated warnings.