Traders, Vendors and Gig Workers Share Suggestions During Focus Group Discussion

Deoghar: A major Focus Group Discussion was organised on Wednesday at Deoghar Municipal Corporation regarding the preparation of the City Livelihood Action Plan. The meeting, held at the conference hall on the second floor of the Municipal Corporation building, focused on strengthening the city’s livelihood system, creating new employment and self-employment opportunities and economically empowering weaker sections of society.The meeting was organised under the direction of Municipal Commissioner Rohit Sinha and jointly chaired by Mayor Ravi Kumar Raut and Deputy Mayor Tip Chatterjee. The primary objective was to prepare a practical and sustainable livelihood plan for Deoghar city with the support of the Directorate of Urban Administration, Ranchi, and the National Institute of Technology, Calicut. Discussions mainly revolved around the present condition and challenges faced by urban poor families, street vendors, labourers, women and workers associated with the unorganised sector.Representatives from various organisations and groups actively participated in the discussion and shared their suggestions. Chamber of Commerce Vice President Piyush Jaiswal stressed the need to strengthen the local business system and generate employment opportunities for local youth. Dilip Barnwal, President of the Footpath Vendors Hawkers Association, and Pankaj Kumar, Secretary of the Deoghar District Retail Traders Association, demanded a safer and more organised system for small vendors and traders.Representing women’s self-help groups, Rakhi Devi and community resource worker Rita Devi highlighted the need for better market access for products made by women and emphasised increasing women’s economic participation.
For the first time, gig workers and daily wage labourers also received an opportunity to directly place their concerns before the administration. Gig worker Ranjan Kumar Sah and mason Rajesh Sah shared issues related to labour safety, minimum wages and difficulties in accessing government welfare schemes.
Senior Sanitation Inspector Sadashiv Jajwade spoke about strengthening the city’s sanitation system and developing environment-friendly livelihood opportunities. Municipal mission managers also discussed ways to ensure better implementation of state and central government welfare schemes at the grassroots level.At the end of the meeting, the Mayor and Deputy Mayor stated that the City Livelihood Action Plan, being prepared with technical support from NIT Calicut, would prove beneficial for poor and needy families in Deoghar. They assured that all valuable suggestions received during the discussion would be given priority in the final action plan.The meeting was attended by Municipal Mission Managers Kaushal Kishore, Vishal Singh and Himanshu Shekhar, along with