The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has approved an approximately twofold increase in the charges imposed to recover handcarts, stalls and other goods seized for obstructing public roads, making it more expensive for alleged encroachers to reclaim their property from civic warehouses.
The revised charges were approved by the civic body’s Town and Planning Committee, according to Divya Bhaskar. Committee chairman Bhagyash Patel said the Estate Department seizes handcarts, street stalls and miscellaneous goods when they are found obstructing traffic or occupying public roads. The charges had not been revised since 2003, prompting the committee to approve the new rates.
The decision applies to goods taken into custody during the corporation’s enforcement action against road encroachments. The report did not provide the earlier or revised rupee amounts, but said the increase would be approximately twofold. Anyone seeking the return of seized goods will have to pay the applicable charges in full, including any additional amount that becomes payable for delayed collection.
The civic body has retained restrictions on when seized goods can be released. The report said goods would not be returned for an initial period and that a monthly charge would apply if they remained uncollected. It also stated that a separate 90-day restriction on release would continue. The precise application of these periods was not detailed in the report.
Food items seized during enforcement will not be retained, according to the decision described by the committee chairman. Such items will be returned to the concerned handcart operator. The distinction means that while equipment, stalls and other materials may remain in municipal custody, perishable food will be handled separately.
The corporation has also approved stricter consequences for repeat violations. Goods seized from a person for the second or third time will not be returned, according to the report. Items seized from declared no-vending zones and from intersections will likewise not be released from municipal warehouses.
The approved conditions also cover confrontations during enforcement. If a person attacks or clashes with the municipal team while goods are being seized, the seized material will not be returned, the report said. The decision therefore combines higher recovery charges with restrictions linked to location, repeat enforcement and conduct during seizure operations.
The revised policy places a direct financial burden on street vendors and other people whose goods are taken during road-clearance drives. At the same time, the corporation’s stated basis for the change is that the recovery charges had remained unchanged for more than two decades. The decision makes the next stage of enforcement significant: the civic body will have to apply the new charges and release conditions through its Estate Department and warehouses.
The report did not specify the effective date of the revised rates, the full charge schedule or the procedure for challenging a seizure. Those details will determine how the new policy is implemented in individual cases.
