How often have we stopped on our way to somewhere to buy something we found selling on the streets? Everyday, I guess. But how many times have we actually acknowledged those hard working street vendors serving us almost everyday.

This blog is an effort to recognize and understand the street hawkers better. We, Swetal and Shipra, students of Product Design at NID, under the guidance of our faculty Praveen Nahar, have taken the initiative to study the system of Street hawking, to be able to enhance the position of these people in society.

Out of the total workforce of India 90% work in the informal sector, out of which 60% are self employed. There are around 1 crore hawkers in India and Ahmedabad itself has around 100,000. Street hawking, besides providing livelihood to a huge percentage of population, is also of utmost convenience to the consumers. It makes required articles readily available and at reasonable price. Street vendors also contribute immensely to the urban economy. A large number of poor populations find it a good means of earning, as it does not require any specific skills, capital and much literacy. It is also beneficial in giving direct market to the small-scale industries.

Since time immemorial, street vending has developed the unique street culture and the true essence on Indian streets.

In order to have a wholistic view we recognized various stakeholders involved in this system, which can be studied in detail so that different perspectives can be understood.