Mayor Mukesh Tatwal of the Ujjain Municipal Corporation gave directives to store owners on Sunday, July 21, asking them to display their names and phone numbers outside their establishments. The decision was issued soon after the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand issued comparable directives for the stores along the Kanwar Yatra route. There is a provision for a fine of Rs 2,000 for the first infraction and Rs 5,000 for the second if someone disobeys the mayor’s directives.
“The order’s goal is to ensure security and transparency, not to target Muslim shopkeepers,” Tatwal stated. Sawan month begins on July 22, 2024. During the holy month of Sawan, many devotees worldwide swarm Ujjain, the holy city of Mahakal, to offer prayers at the Mahakal Temple. Mohan Yadav, the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, is a native of Ujjain.
Notably, the mayor-in-council previously approved a plan to let store owners display their names in their establishments. After that, it was forwarded to the state government for formalities and objections. “All the formalities have already been finished,” he declared. Because the nameplates had to be the same size and colour at first, the deployment was delayed. We’ve loosened these restrictions now. It will now be sufficient to display the retailers’ names and mobile numbers.
He also emphasised how it improves customer safety. The Gumasta Licence and the MP Shop Establishment Act both contain the directive. “Ujjain is a religious and holy city,” he declared. Individuals who practice religion come here. They are entitled to information about the retailer from whom they purchase items. If a consumer feels mistreated or unsatisfied, finding out about the shopkeeper can help resolve the issue.
Curiously, store owners in Bodh Gaya have already begun to display their names on display boards in light of the pilgrimages that devotees make to the Mahabodhi Temple in the month of Saavan.
The governments of Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh order shops to reveal their names.
The instructions from the Muzaffarnagar administration asking cart owners and shops to clearly display their and their employees’ names set the whole thing off. The goal was to prevent any disagreements during the Kanwar Yatra. Islamists and left-liberals denounced the directives as discriminatory. Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, intervened after the uproar and gave orders to display the identities of cart and store owners along Kanwar Yatra Marg. The Uttarakhand administration also issued similar directives, drawing inspiration from UP.
