Assembly gives nod to mandatory Marathi sign boards at shops

The font size of the lettering in Marathi-Devanagari should not be smaller than the font size of letters in any other language that is used on the signage

Mumbai The Maharashtra legislative assembly has approved a law which makes it mandatory for all shops and establishments to have Marathi written in the Devanagari script on their signboards.

The decision assumes significance in view of the forthcoming elections to the civic bodies in Mumbai and Thane, where the Shiv Sena faces a tough challenge from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) (Hindustan Times)

The font size of the lettering in Marathi-Devanagari should not be smaller than the font size of letters in any other language that is used on the signage.

The decision assumes significance in view of the forthcoming elections to the civic bodies in Mumbai and Thane, where the Shiv Sena faces a tough challenge from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Emotive issues centred around Marathi language and identity will help the Sena consolidate its nativist votes.

The bill to amend the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017, was approved by the assembly on Wednesday.

In 2017, the Maharashtra government had made it compulsory for all shops and establishments in the state to have signboards in Marathi and in the Devanagari script. However, some establishments with less than 10 workers tried to evade this rule. In some cases, while the name was mentioned in capital letters in English, the signage in Marathi was in the smaller case. Now, the Act has mandated that even those shops employing less than 10 workers will need signage in Marathi. The establishments can have any other language and script on their name boards. However, the lettering in Marathi must be written in the beginning on the name board and the font size shall not be smaller than the other languages.

“Now, the boards on shops, establishments and offices must be in Marathi. Earlier, there were loopholes, which have been plugged…the rules are clear. While other languages like English can be used on the board, Marathi must get a similar space,” said Subhash Desai, minister for Marathi language.

The law also stipulates that no establishment where liquor is served or sold shall have a name board in the name of legends, icons or forts.

Viren Shah, president, Federation of Retail Traders Welfare Association (FRTWA), said that this amendment would cause inconvenience to shopkeepers and establishment owners. “We never had any objections to the Marathi lettering, but to the font size…it will be inconvenient for people to change their boards to Marathi,” he added. Shah had unsuccessfully challenged the move in the Bombay High Court (HC) and added that they were examining if they could move the Supreme Court (SC).

Shah said that malls, hotels and establishments will have to spend money to change the format of their signboards to Marathi.