In Amritsar city, business establishments will now have to pay a fine from May 1 for not renewing their trade licenses on time. The Municipal Corporation has clarified that businessmen who do not renew their license on time, they will have to pay a fine of 25 percent. Its
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According to the estimate of the municipal corporation, Amritsar city has more than 55,000 commercial establishments which will come under the purview of this system. However, last year, only 15,801 traders renovated their licenses and paid a conjunctive fee. According to the corporation, it is currently ₹ 500 for license renewal and the annual conjunctive fee is ₹ 300.
Staff shortage became a challenge
The corporation is facing many administrative challenges in implementing the system. There is a huge shortage of staff in the corporation and no new survey has been done, due to which the accurate assessment of the number of real businesses is not possible. The business license branch currently employs only two inspectors, while the clerical staff is completely absent. Due to this, inspectors are also employed many times in other departmental works, affecting the process of renewal of license.
The corporation has an income of 2 crores
According to the Municipal Corporation records, 14,950 licenses were renewed in the financial year 2023-24, making the corporation an income of ₹ 1.96 crore. In 2024-25, this number reached 15,801 and an income of ₹ 2 crore was recorded. However, this year only 851 new licenses were added, which is considered a relatively low increase.
Municipal Corporation Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Aulakh said that the corporation is now insisting on strengthening the license department. “We appeal to the traders to renew their trade license on time so that they do not have to pay additional fine,” he said.
Pay from online portal
The Municipal Corporation Commissioner informed that the online portal of the corporation, through which the license can be renewed and fee can now be paid, has now been reactivated. The portal has been updated according to the new financial year after being closed for 20 days. There is also a stir among business organizations and businessmen regarding this strictness of the Municipal Corporation, because now there will be direct economic losses on delay.