The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has issued licenses to two hundred establishments including restaurants and eateries in the capital to allow them to dine alfresco on terraces and open spaces attached to them.
Of the licenses granted to date, 155 are for open space dining and the remaining 45 are for terrace dining.
“In less than a week, when the Delhi Municipal Corporation allowed applications from restaurants and eateries to allow them to hold open-air dinners on terraces and adjacent open spaces, 200 establishments in the capital have been awarded licenses,” the statement read.
Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena on October 31, 2022 assembled a committee of senior officials from the concerned departments/agencies to relax and facilitate the licensing requirements of restaurants, eateries and hotels, with the aim of boosting the hospitality sector, by paving the way for Late Night Dining, Alfresco Eateries and Outdoor Dining and Terraces. The commission submitted its report within 15 days, after which the MCD began inviting applications for alfresco dining.
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The LG has, since the takeover, placed emphasis on promoting measures and policies that would boost economic activity, job creation and the overnight economy. He has met many times over the past month with officials from the Delhi Police, local authorities and the Environment Department, among others, to ensure that a favorable regime is put in place for the hotel/restaurant/hospitality industry.
He has focused on rationalizing licensing requirements, easing prohibitions and processes, ensuring an anonymous and online interface between regulators and business owners to deter harassment and corruption, and ensuring safety through proper law and order.
Until now, hospitality establishments/entrepreneurs, especially those from the small and medium segment, have been subjected to registration/licensing and inspection processes in the city by Delhi Police, Local Agencies (MCD & NDMC), Fire Brigade and DPCC. These processes and requirements were often found to be outdated, unnecessarily restrictive, coercive and discretionary. They also often led to complaints of harassment and corruption, with the result that unlike other global and Indian cities, Delhi’s hospitality sector has not yet reached its full potential.
It is expected that the changes and adjustments made, see this committee’s report, will not only bring great relief to the pandemic-ravaged hospitality industry, but more importantly, will also give a major boost to the ‘night economy’, enabling more employment and ensuring economic growth.
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