Street vendors of Lagankhel (Photo Feature)

Street vendors in Lalitpur are free to sell their products after five in the evening, unlike in Kathmandu where it’s prohibited. For as long as I can remember, Lagankhel Bus Park has been the place where street vendors gather to sell their goods—clothing items, household goods, bags, spice, vegetable, knick-knacks of all sorts. 

Early this week, I visited the place at around 5 pm, just as the vendors were setting up shop. Some of them just stood carrying their merchandise. There was one particular trader that caught my eye. He was selling bags, dozens of them, hanging around his body. All I could see was his head and feet. A walking store. I wondered how he managed to walk.

As the evening progressed, the crowds got bigger. For the street vendors every one of them is a potential customer. They seem more active and louder in order to draw the attention of the people. They offer competitive prices, yet there is no shortage of hagglers. Some negotiations succeed, some fall through.

For these street vendors, this is their daily life, their livelihood. I talked to a few vendors, and they were happy with the city’s rule, allowing them to sell their goods only in the evening. They were happy, they told me. There were some who wished that the city provided them with a specific area where they could sell their products any time of the day.

I also came across some vendors who had come all the way from Kathmandu to hawk their goods. They had no option, they told me, since the Kathmandu Metropolitan City does not like street vendors.