Parliament today passed Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) bill-2013 with the Rajya Sabha adopting it by voice vote and without discussion. The bill was adopted by the Lok Sabha earlier. The Street Vending Bill aims at protecting the rights of urban street vendors and regulating street vending activities.

The Bill endeavours to put in place a strong redressal mechanism for the vendor community. It proposes setting up of Town Vending Committees which will be responsible for deciding vending zones and the number of vendors that each zone should have. The bill provides for time-bound release of seized goods, both perishable and non-perishable. The legislation would create a conducive atmosphere for street vendors to do their business with dignity and help give livelihood protection to about one crore families.

AIR correspondent adds that two other bills were also passed by Parliament with the Rajya Sabha approving them today without discussion. The bills are Governors Emoluments, Allowances and Privileges) Amendment and National Institutes of Technology, Science Education and Research (Amendment). The bills were adopted by the Lok Sabha earlier. The Upper House also adopted the Rani Lakshmi Bai Central Agricultural University Bill 1012 by voice vote and without discussion as leaders of all parties had agreed to pass the bills because they were non-controversial .

The Rani Lakshmi Bai Central Agricultural University Bill provides for establishment of an agricultural university in Bundelkhand Region in Uttar Pradesh for the development of farming and furtherance of research in agriculture and allied sciences in the region.