Maharashtra government lets shops to remain open all year round

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government has allowed shops and other establishments in the state to stay open seven days a week throughout the year, a decision that traders said would help boost their businesses and reduce harassment by authorities.

The Shops and Establishments Act stipulated that these establishments be shut for one day in a week in order to ensure that their employees get a day off. Besides the weekly off, they had to take special permission from the labour department if they wanted to open during special days like Holi or Diwali. This was a hassle for most of the shopkeepers and establishment owners, who used to complain of a lot of red tape and harassment.

The Retailers Association of India had been in talks with the government of chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to drop the requirement. Only Madhya Pradesh and Delhi have given traders similar freedom.

The initial relaxation is for a year. This move, said government officials, is to gauge the impact of the changes.

Apurva Chandra, the state's principal secretary for industry, said the decision was taken as part of the government's `ease of doing business' initiative.

The move, though, comes with certain caveats.

“We have stipulated that even if the establishment works for 365 days a year, the employees should be given a weekly off and the duty hours should not be more than nine hours a day and no more than 48 hours a week,“ said Chandra.

A state government official said employees of the establishments that want to keep their shops open throughout the week would have to give their employees their weekly off on rotational basis.

Traders welcomed the government decision.

“We used to face a lot of harassment if we used to keep our shops open on special days. The BMC staff would come and harass us and seek bribes and if we didn't pay then we would be fined. This is a good initia tive,“ said Viren Shah of the Federation of Retail Traders Welfare Association.

In another important relaxation, the state allowed women to work till 9.30 pm in these establishments. They were previously allowed to work only till 8pm. Meanwhile, the fine print of the notification has created some concern. It states that a shop or establishment that has female employees should have a sexual harassment redressal committee. “The notification is not clear on how many employees should be there in a shop for the committee to be formed. For example, in some shops there could be only one female employee. This is a bit of concern that we will raise with the government for clarifications after speaking to our members,“ said Shah.