PMC issues notices to 1163 shops for lack of Marathi name boards

The process of issuing notices commenced on Saturday, following Friday’s meeting between the deputy municipal commissioner Ganesh Shete and ward officers

Panvel: The Panvel Municipal Corporation (PMC) has issued notices to 1,163 shops and commercial establishments in its jurisdiction for not having signboards in Marathi (Devanagri) script. The civic body is also creating awareness on the issue through public announcements using loudspeakers.

PMC issues notices to 1163 shops for lack of Marathi name boards

The process of issuing notices commenced on Saturday, following Friday’s meeting between the deputy municipal commissioner Ganesh Shete and ward officers. The meeting was held following instructions from municipal commissioner Ganesh Deshmukh.

“We have issued notices to shops and commercial establishments in all the 4 wards of the civic body. We have also deployed vehicles in every ward, which are going around making announcements regarding the mandatory provision,” said Deshmukh. He said ward officers were in the process of surveying establishments to ascertain if they had Marathi signboards and issuing notices to violators.

“There are several shops and establishments in PMC’s jurisdiction whose name boards are either only in English or some other language. Some name boards do have Marathi, but the Marathi name is displayed in one corner of the board in small font size,” said Deshmukh.

Section 36A of the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) (Amendment) Act, 2022 mandates that the font size of Marathi letters should not be lesser than the font size of letters in any other language.

Civic officials said several establishments had taken corrective action since the commencement of the clampdown and changed their signboards to conform with the law.