JAMMU: Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) Jammu has expressed strong resentment against the attitude of Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) for unnecessary harassing the shopkeepers in the city on one pretext or another especially when the region is confronting with second wave of lethal coronavirus and business is already on the lowest ebb.
To strongly project the issue before the concerned authority, the CCI delegation led by its President Arun Gupta visited JMC Office here at Town Hall and met the Commissioner of the civic body Avny Lavasa in the presence of Mayor Jammu Chander Mohan Gupta. At the outset, the CCI President expressed displeasure over the unwarranted attitude of JMC while dealing with the trader fraternity in Jammu.
Citing the ugly episode of the New Plot market a couple of days before where the sleuths of JMC misbehaved with the shopkeepers and some of their customers, Arun said that such kind of unruly behavior by government employees is uncalled for and should be restrained by all means. He said that despite the government being well aware of the fact that the business community in Jammu faced colossal losses on account of lockdowns and restrictions that followed in the year 2020, it is indulging in ‘monopolizing tactics’ instead of offering solace by giving some sops or exemptions.
The CCI President particularly mentioned the instances of JMC teams wreaking havoc in markets by lifting products of shopkeepers placed for display thus incurring huge losses besides traumatizing the business community. He also took up the matter of using JCB machines by the civic body to remove pavements and drain covers constructed by the traders to beautify the surroundings.
After giving a patient hearing, JMC Commissioner Avny Lavasa came up with a novel solution of drawing a yellow line in all the markets to segregate the space between shops and the roads and lanes. It was decided amicably that shopkeepers will not cross this line while displaying their products and if there is any contravention reported in one month’s time strict action will be taken against the defaulters.
It was also decided that the JMC will first take into confidence the particular market association before going in for any penal action or starting an anti-encroachment drive. The JMC Commissioner, however, appealed to the people of Jammu especially the trader fraternity to restrain from encroachment as this amounts to difficulty to fellow citizens besides inviting penalty or other legal action under law.
