The iconic Sunday book market at Daryaganj in Old Delhi is now a thing of the past.
A report by Indian Express suggests that the market has been closed following an order by the Delhi Municipal Corporation.
Last month, the Delhi High Court had ordered the market to be shut down. The court’s order came after Delhi traffic police submitted its report and told the court that Netaji Subhash Chandra Marg was a no hawking zone.
While the book shops in the area will continue to operate in the same way, vendors won’t be allowed to put out the market on roads.
Apparently, selling books every Sunday in this market, was the only source of income for many vendors and now over 250 booksellers are expected to be affected by this move.
Officials are also exploring other options to relocate the market. Talking to Indian Express, North Delhi Municipal Commissioner Varsha Joshi said:
“We are exploring options and hope to find something mutually acceptable in a meeting this week.”
Apart from the vendors, this will be a huge loss for the students too, who used to come here to buy books at highly subsidised rates.
Functioning for over 50 years, we have had a lot of memories associated with this Sunday book market in Daryaganj and we hope that the officials come up with some alternative soon.