India, Nov. 20 -- The Bombay High Court has delivered a scathing assessment of the rampant illegal hawking across Mumbai, likening the issue to a "disease" that is spreading.

While hearing a plea filed by Vikhroli residents against encroachments in designated non-hawking zones, a division bench of justices Ravindra Ghuge and Ashwin Bhobe said, "We find that the problem of hawkers and tin sheds occupying practically every footpath and street in Mumbai has assumed the character of a disease. Such a situation is spreading in all directions in Mumbai."

The bench also directed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to compel the hawkers to vacate the spots, strictly following the procedure laid down by law.

The court's order stems fro...