The Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government accepted a proposal on Wednesday to have shops prominently display a Marathi signboard. The idea was approved by the state cabinet and will apply to all stores and establishments in the state.
The Maharashtra government mandated that all shops in the state have a Marathi-language signboard in 2017. Its implementation, however, did not go as intended. Small name plates were put on businesses in Marathi in numerous places, and traders in many places circumvented this requirement.
The name used to be written in capital letters in several places in English. Names in Marathi, on the other hand, used to be written in lower case. As a result of today’s decision, Marathi names will have to be written in capital letters, just like any other language.
Why is Maharashtra not considering a state-of-emergency? Letters in the Marathi-Devanagari alphabet cannot be kept shorter than letters in other (English or other) scripts, according to a new amendment. Shopkeepers across the state will now be required to display their store signage in Marathi as a result of this ruling.
“The Maharashtra administration has decided that all shops shall have name boards in Marathi,” state industries minister Subhash Desai stated.
This should be in a font which is State industries minister Subhash Desai said, “The Maharashtra government has taken a decision that all shops should have name boards in Marathi. This should be in a font which is prominently visible.
The decision to have Marathi name boards on shops was taken in 2017. But its implementation was not happening on the ground. Hence, the Cabinet today took the decision to implement it effectively.”
“Earlier, this rule was applied to shops having more than 10 Maharashtrian employees. That rule has been amended and now all shops will have a bird in Marathi,” he added.
As the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017 came into force, it was found that establishments and shops with less than ten workers were evading the rules. Such complaints were received by the government and there was a demand to take action against them. To alleviate this issue, the Cabinet decided to amend the Act. Meanwhile, Shiv Sena’s old ally BJP alleged that the move was being taken keeping in mind the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections. The party said that Sena is looking to consolidate its Marathi manoos pitch by taking this decision.
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