In India's tech capital, Kannada now gets 'prominence' on signboards

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: As one goes around India's tech hub, what catches the eye most these days is how the language of the land, Kannada, gets "prominence" on the signboards of businesses.

A far cry indeed from the not-toodistant past when English held sway, thanks to a government directive.

With the deadline for complying with 60 per cent use of Kannada in signboards of businesses and establishments coming to an end, a vast majority of them in the city appear to have obeyed the mandate, with many even going for stopgap arrangements, aimed at ensuring compliance.

A bill mandating 60 per cent use of Kannada in signboards of businesses and establishments was passed by the Karnataka Assembly in February, and the government had warned that non-compliance would lead to the cancellation of the licences of businesses.

Now, temporary boards or banners instead of boards that are not rules compliant, and also clothes or stickers covering the old boards, can be seen at several places in the city, in a bid to avoid fines and other penal action.

Many traders, who have gone for this ad hoc arrangement, cite demand and supply mismatch as the reason for not installing new boards before the deadline.

They say that in the wake of rules and the deadline for compliance, board makers or artists were besieged by traders and businesses with orders.

There are supply side constraints, with an inadequate number of competent board artists to meet the surge in demand, coupled with resources and logistic issues.

"There is a delay in delivery of a new board with 60 per cent in Kannada, for which I had placed an order. So I have used this banner for the time being. I don't want to face any trouble for non-compliance," a trader told PTI on Thursday.

Bengaluru's civic body, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike had earlier set a February 28 deadline to comply with 60 per cent use of Kannada in signboards of businesses and establishments in the city limits.

However, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, who is also in-charge for Bengaluru Development, had extended the deadline by two weeks.

A shop owner said he had been to several board makers and artists, and many did not take his order, citing that "their hands are full."

"While some who were ready to take orders said there will be some delay. I finally agreed to it. My board will come in a couple of days. Till then I have covered my existing board with stickers," he said.

Agreeing that there have been some delays on their part in delivering orders on time as required by the customers, board designers and manufacturers say, the process is time-consuming, and they are also facing a shortage of manpower to meet the sudden rise in demand, along with logistic issues.

According to official sources, by and large businesses have complied with the rules. They said out of 50,357 shops and commercial establishments that were identified for violations, 49,732 have complied with the new rules, and the remaining 625 shops are yet to comply or are in the process.

Kannada activists and organisations have urged the authorities to ensure that traders or owners of establishments who have made temporary arrangements, comply with the rules permanently.

They have also asked local authorities to ensure that the rules are compiled by businesses and establishments in other districts too, especially in the border regions.