The delay in the establishment of designated vending zones in Guwahati continues to deprive pedestrians of their right to use pavements. More than a year has elapsed since the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) notified 81 locations in the city as designated vending zones, but street vendors continue to occupy sidewalks and pavements as proposed vending zones are yet to be ready for opening. The city has witnessed a substantial increase in the number of street vendors as more and more vendors who have availed loans under the PM Street Vendor’s Atma Nirbhar Nidhi (PMSVANidhi) have started vending on the streets for livelihood and repayment of the loan amount. The street vendors selling fresh vegetables, fruits, fish, stationery goods, garments, processed food items etc. is a crucial requirement for city residents. It is also important to protect the livelihoods of the street vendors, and the GMC has the legal mandate to facilitate them to carry on their trade and business. Protecting the rights of the street vendors to use the roadside for vending needs to be balanced with the rights of citizens to use the pavements for barrier-free and safe movements. Construction of vending zones is not a mega construction project and requires simple civil engineering skills and city land use planning. Undue delay in the construction of the designated vending zones is baffling and it only demonstrates the GMC authorities cannot undertake and execute even a small-scale project like the creation of vending space in identified locations. Increasing congestion on city roads due to the rising number of vehicles has added to pedestrians’ woes as they must walk along the main carriageway and jostle for space with a mixed mode of vehicles with pavements remaining out of bound due to encroachment by street vendors. Haphazard parking of vehicles along the roadside by market goers who stop by to pick up products sold by street vendors adds to traffic chaos. Ironically, even after more than ten years since the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014 was enacted to protect the rights of urban street vendors and to regulate street vending Guwahati continues to grapple with the problem of unregulated street vending. This points towards the serious gap in the city planning process even though it has been rapidly expanding vertically and horizontally resulting in a substantial rise in residential and floating population. Decongesting the city has been long overdue and further delay will only make it more unliveable and unsustainable. The Act stipulates that the plan for street vending shall ensure the right of commuters to move freely and use the roads without any impediment. The GMC has not been able to comply with either mandate- providing registered vendors designated space and ensuring the barrier-free movement of commuters which only points towards its inefficiency. Diluting the role of elected representatives and providing more powers to officials has turned the corporation into a top-heavy organisation. Growing disconnects between GMC and city residents primarily due to the failure of most elected councillors to voice the grievances of city residents they represent has compounded the problems such as illegal encroachment of pavements by vendors. Ongoing construction of the city drainage network has further reduced effective carriage while street vendors in these localities have moved to new locations in narrow by-lanes. While currently all unauthorised street vending zones are functioning as free-vending zones, except when GMC authorities carry out periodic eviction drives, the Act provides forthe determination of vending zones as restriction-free-vending zones, restricted vending zones and no-vending zones. Until the designated vending zones are created at least no-vending zones can be demarcated and notified so that city residents and commuters can also discourage the vendors from vending in these zones. This, however, requires a policy decision to be taken by taking the street vendors’ bodies into confidence as the Act states that declaration of a no-vending zone shall be done in a manner which displaces the minimum percentage of street vendors and overcrowding of any place shall not be a basis for declaring any area as a no-vending zone provided that restrictions may be placed on issuing a certificate of vending in such areas to persons not identified as street vendors in the survey. Lack of transparency on the survey of vendors and issuing of certificates to vendors is another area of concern. The GMC issuing identity cards to registered street vendors and making it mandatory to display it can make identification of unauthorised street vendors and prevent them from carrying on trade illegally. Preventing unauthorised vending is also critical from the point of safety and security of city residents. The problem of unauthorised and illegal occupation of pavements and sidewalks of city roads by street vendors requires a holistic and multi-pronged approach. The Sooner the GMC authorities realise the consequences of delaying the establishment of designated and regulated vending zones the better.