Overview
- Punjab’s government has designated the Walled City a holy zone, prohibiting sales of meat, fish and tobacco near the Golden Temple area.
- Municipal surveys have identified roughly 110 to about 150 shops and vendors for relocation, with lists shared after field checks.
- Affected traders met in Gol Bagh and plan to submit a memorandum to the deputy commissioner, municipal commissioner and mayor seeking alternatives.
- AAP representatives say rehabilitation will be phased and consultative, though no detailed relocation sites or compensation packages have been announced.
- The announcement has drawn objections from Sikh leaders defending jhatka meat and warnings from hospitality groups that small vendors will bear the brunt and illicit trade could grow.