Vikramaditya says HP nameplate remark should not be compared with another state

A day after the Himachal Pradesh government clarified that no decision had been taken for mandating the display of nameplates by vendors on stalls, state urban development minister Vikramaditya Singh said on Friday that his statement about it should not be politicised or related to any other state.
Interacting with the media in New Delhi, he said: “Our (AICC) Himachal Pradesh in-charge Rajeev Shukla has also clarified the context in which I made the statement. This should not be related to any other state and it should not be seen in a political light. But it is our responsibility to address the concerns of the people of Himachal.”
A state government spokesperson said suggestions have been received from different sections of society regarding the street vendors’ policy. “So far, the government has not taken any decision to mandatorily display nameplates or other identification by vendors on their stalls,” the statement said.
With many comparing the move with a controversial order on similar lines in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Vikramaditya Singh said on Friday, “I never said that the same thing will be implemented. I said that addressing the concerns of the people of Himachal Pradesh is our responsibility.”
“Deliberations will be conducted by the committee constituted and all concerns of people will be heard and addressed before a decision is taken. But I am reiterating that there are court judgments and the government has to adhere to them in a stipulated time-frame,” he said.
On Wednesday, Vikramaditya Singh had shared a post on social media, stating that every restaurant and fastfood stall in the state will have to display the owner’s ID so people do not face any problem.
On Thursday, Shukla said he had discussed the issue with chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Vikramaditya Singh. He said the matter sprang from the assembly Speaker forming a committee to designate specific areas for street vendors. “They will be given licences and regulated so that police do not harass them. The designated places will require identification such as Aadhaar cards and licences, but there is no requirement for them to display a sign stating their name as the owner,” he said. “The aim is to ensure that street vendors have proper locations to operate without disrupting traffic, especially since it is a hilly area and has narrow roads,” he added.
He debunked the notion that the Himachal government had taken a leaf out of the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in Uttar Pradesh. “This is not on Yogi pattern, as those things are done in UP on communal pattern, which is not the case here. I want to clarify that the government has not given any such order… they (government or Vikramaditya) have not been reprimanded,” Shukla said.