From November 1, which is celebrated as Kannada Rajyotsava, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will cancel the trade licences of establishments that have not given prominence to Kannada in their name boards.
An order issued by BBMP Commissioner B.H. Anil Kumar on Saturday states that 60% of the signage should be in Kannada. The new rule will apply to even those applying for new licences or renewals.
It is mandatory for all establishments to have Kannada signage, but according to officials, more often than not, the text is relegated to small corner of the name board. The issue was discussed in a meeting chaired by Mayor M. Goutham Kumar with the BBMP Commissioner and heads of various departments.
Civic officials have been directed to strictly enforce the rule, besides discussing the possibility of increasing the validity of trade licences from one year to five years, and amending the bylaws to allow essential commercial establishments on roads in residential areas that are less than 40 feet wide.
The Kannada Development Authority had written to the BBMP on the topic of Kannada in name boards in 2017. Former Mayor R. Sampath Raj had also directed BBMP officials to cancel trade licences of establishments that didn’t have Kannada on their name boards.
