Cuttack: The traffic management committee has formed a sub-committee to evaluate the locations identified by the civic body for vending zones.

"The sub-committee was constituted at the monthly committee meeting on Wednesday," assistant commissioner of police (traffic) Pradeep Kumar Dalai said.

The civic body has identified 24 locations for the vending zones and followed it up with a feasibility study.

"The locations will be finalised after vetting by the committee," municipal commissioner Bikash Ranjan Mohapatra said.

The sub-committee will complete evaluation before the committee's next meeting, held in the last week of each month.

The sub-committee includes civic body, development authority, roads and buildings (Cuttack), and irrigation (divisions I and II) officials, the Cuttack Sadar tehsildar, lawyers Arun Kumar Budhia and Prasanta Nayak, Surya Kanta Nanda, an engineer as independent member, and Dalai himself. A Cuttack Municipal Corporation officer will be member-convener.

Orissa High Court formed the committee, headed by the police commissioner, as part of implementation of the Odisha Street Vendor Scheme and Rules - 2015, in April last year.

Official sources said the civic body had estimated a project cost of Rs 4 crore for development of the targeted vending zone at different places of the city and allocated Rs 1 crore for it in its budget for 2017-18.

"Street vending has been a persistent issue as street vendors have increased manifold in recent years by encroaching roadsides and causing traffic congestion. The proposed vending zones will address this problem," said advocate Pravat Ranjan Dash, specially-nominated member of the committee.