Policy impact on street vending, case of k. r. market, bangalore

The urban experience of Indian cities is mixture of formal and informal spaces, both in context of spatial arrangement and material experience. The new paradigm of globalized smart cities fails to plan/ consider the presence of such street/ block activities in the planning process.Considering street vending playing a major role in contributing to India’s informal economy, this paper critiques the various policies in place at international, national and at Karnataka state level. Taking the example of Gujarat state in India where street vending is included in the town planning act, the paper analyses the possibilities of failure and success of these policies. Ever increasing demand of urban informal economies is not only caused by regulatory inadequacies but rather by the failure of economic system to create enough productive employment. So the argument over here is, if these policies help to meet the larger issues? Further, the paper aims to investigate the spatial impact of street vending in high density Indian market, taking the area of scope as Krishna Rajendra Market of Bangalore city, Karnataka, India.