Pune: Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has introduced a QR code tracking system to address concerns raised by roadside vendors regarding the theft and mishandling of confiscated materials during anti-encroachment operations. The innovative approach aims to provide transparency and assist hawkers in locating their seized items.
Senior PMC officials stated that the implementation of QR codes is a response to the hawkers’ worries about financial losses incurred due to the mishandling of seized materials. The QR codes will be assigned to roadside vendors, enabling them to track the confiscated items seized by local authorities.
The municipal administration plans to acquire electronic QR code generators for this purpose and distribute them to ward offices across the city. These devices will generate QR codes linked to specific items, providing information such as disposal location, materials used, and other relevant details. The central PMC head office will manage this data and collaborate with ward offices to facilitate the release of confiscated goods.
PMC’s largest godown, located in Balewadi, serves as a storage facility for confiscated items. The introduction of QR codes is expected to streamline the process of tracking and managing seized materials, ensuring better accountability and transparency in anti-encroachment operations.
Additionally, PMC takes legal action against unauthorized hawkers occupying stalls without proper licenses, leading to the termination of such activities. The administration imposes an annual renewal fee for hawker licenses, and in the case of 80 stalls where owners failed to renew licenses, the administration has taken the measure of sealing them.
