PESHAWAR
\nFor years, 47-year-old fruit seller Bilal Khan has pushed his wooden cart through the congested streets of Qisakhwani bazaar Peshawar, constantly wary of an unexpected and sudden anti-encroachment drive by the district administration and police, demanding for unofficial payments, or the looming fear of losing his only source of income without warning.
\nBut this week, Bilal says, he felt something rare relief after the Chief Minister KP\u2019s announcement to introduce legislation to protect vendor business.
\n\u201cI heard on the TV channels that the KP government wants to protect our business sparking widespread jubilation among our community,\u201d he said, wiping dust from his cart in Qisakhwani Bazaar on Saturday. \u201cIf that really happens, it will change our lives.\u201d
\nBilal is one of more than 140,000 street vendors across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa who stand to benefit from a groundbreaking piece of proposed legislation ie Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Livelihood Protection Bill 2025.
\nThe draft, completed and now heading to the provincial cabinet, has been widely praised by civil society groups, economists and business leaders for its promise to formally safeguard the people who power the province\u2019s sprawling street economy and largely push the province economic wheel forward.
\nCalling it historic, PTI MNA Ashfaq Khan said the bill would make KP the first province in Pakistan to give permanent but enforceable legal rights to a large number of street vendors in KP.
\nHe said that street vendors of fruits, vegetables, garments, makeup products and household items all will benefit from the landmark legislation.
\nFor decades, vendors operating in markets, bazaars, roadsides, intersections and neighbourhood lanes have worked in a grey zone visible yet unrecognized, vital yet vulnerable.
\n\u201cDespite contributing to an estimated Rs380 billion street economy, vendors have remained exposed to harassment, extortion, displacement and arbitrary confiscation of their carts or goods,\u201d said senior economist Sumbul Riaz while talking to APP.
\nInstead to spend time with families, she said their arrest on name of encroachment land them in police lockups and jails.
\nAshfaq Khan MNA said the new law seeks to change that no official, authority or individual will be allowed to unlawfully seize vending spaces or displace vendors.
\nHe said it emphasizing that any act of intimidation, coercion or illegal payments demanded from vendors whether by police, government staff or private persons would become a serious criminal offense.
\nAmong the bill\u2019s most significant features is the introduction of Tehsil Vending Committees (TVC), where vendor representatives will sit alongside government officials in decisions about vending zones, registrations and dispute resolution.
\nFor people like Malaika Bibi, who sells homemade snacks near Karkhano Market, this representation is a turning point for women venders.
\n\u201cWe never had a say in economic or policy decisions,\u201d she said. \u201cMost of the time we didn\u2019t even know why we were being asked to move. If we can speak in these committees, maybe our side will finally be heard.\u201d
\nAnother key focus of the proposed key legislation is due process. Under the proposed law, no anti-encroachment action can be taken against a registered vendor without prior notice, evidence-based reasoning and adherence to legal procedures.
\nFor long-time vendors, the unpredictability of enforcement has been one of the most damaging aspects of their work and accumulation of money.
\n\u201cWe were always scared. One wrong day and you lose everything,\u201d said 60-year-old vendor Fayyaz Ali, who sells winter waistcoat at Jehangirura market opposite Qisakhwani bazaar. \u201cIf the law protects us, it will give us dignity and our business will shine.\u201d
\nHe hoped that it is a step toward restoring pride, self-worth and economic equality for people who have been invisible in policymaking for far too long in KP.
\nBeyond legal protection, the bill charts a path for vendors to become part of the formal economy. It promises access to microfinance, credit, insurance and emergency support, enabling thousands of small-scale workers to stabilize and grow their enterprises.
\nCivil society organizations and legal community l have welcomed the intiative, calling it a long overdue recognition of one of KP\u2019s most hardworking and marginalized communities.
\n\u201cThe proposed bill will protect legal rights of street vendors,\u201d said Noman Bukhari advocate while talking to APP.
\nAs the bill moves to the provincial assembly, he hopes continue to rise among street vendors who have lived for decades on the margins of the city\u2019s bustling life.
\n\u201cIf the government protects us,\u201d Bilal said, looking at his fruit cart with a cautious smile, \u201cmy children might have a better future than mine.\u201d
\nFor thousands like him, the proposed legislation is more than a policy but it is a promise that the wheels of their carts may finally turn on steadier ground in Peshawar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
PESHAWAR For years, 47-year-old fruit seller Bilal Khan has pushed his wooden cart through the congested streets of Qisakhwani bazaar Peshawar, constantly wary of an unexpected and sudden anti-encroachment drive by the district administration and police, demanding for unofficial payments, or the looming fear of losing his only source of income without warning. But this […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-516158","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-peshawar"},"yoast_head":"\n