Separate policy for marriage palaces

Chandigarh, October 9, 2012: Punjab has drafted a new policy for existing marriage palaces in the state keeping in mind public safety and public convenience.

This was disclosed by Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal when a delegation of marriage palace owners called on him seeking early resolution of their problems.

Badal said that he has already studied the problems being faced by marriage palaces and legal issues involved after recent court directive. He said that it has been decided to come out with the comprehensive policy for marriage palaces so that they can get them regularized after meeting the stipulations laid down in the policy. Adding, he said that new policy focuses on public convenience, public safety and smooth parking arrangement by each marriage palace. The policy mandates that each marriage palace would meet the fire safety norms as public security cannot be compromised.

Badal said that the policy has created a new category for marriage palaces as earlier it was clubbed under commercial category giving a major relief to marriage palace owners.

He said that the policy is working out classification of marriage palaces as per their location and size and detailed rates of change of land use, licence fee and other charges payable at regularisation would be notified in the policy. Further, he said that keeping in view that working of marriage palaces was seasonal activity, a separate category for marriage palaces has been created.

Assuring decentralised and single window service for regularisation of marriage palaces, Badal said that it was in the interest of marriage palaces to get their marriage palaces regularized at the earliest after meeting the norms laid down in the new policy.

Besides representatives of various associations of marriage palace owners, prominent amongst those who were present in the meeting included N.K. Sharma, Chief Parliamentary Secretary, S.K. Sandhu, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, P.S. Aujla, Principal Secretary to Deputy Chief Minister, Manvesh Singh Sidhu and Ajay Kumar Mahajan, both Special Principal Secretaries to Deputy Chief Minister besides Chief Administrators of all urban development bodies in the state.