The teams of the BMC officials on Tuesday fanned out across the city to check if the shops have adhered to the norm of displaying Marathi signboards in Devanagari script. Of 3,269 shops inspected, 179 of them were found to be non-compliant, prompting the civic officials to issue inspection reports to them. There are around five lakh shops and establishments in Mumbai.
“Around 95 per cent of the shops and establishments have made the necessary changes to the signboards. Shops failing to comply with the rule will have to face legal action,” said Deputy Municipal Commissioner Sanjog Kabre.
BMC initiates action against shops in Colaba for non-compliance with Marathi signboard requirement on November 28, 2023. | Vijay Gohil
Maximum penalty to be imposed will be Rs 1 lakh
As per the Supreme Court directives and the legal provisions, the violators will get notices and then cases will be filed in court to impose a fine of Rs 2,000 per individual working in the establishment, said the BMC. The maximum penalty amount is Rs 1 lakh. The BMC clarified that a penalty of Rs 2,000 will be slapped everyday on the shop if it violates the rule continuously.
The action comes after the two-month deadline set by the Supreme Court for the shops to install Marathi signboards in Devanagari script expired on November 25. In January 2022, the government amended the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Condition of Service) Act, 2017, making it compulsory for shops across the state to display Marathi signboards.
