100 illegal marriage palaces may be closed this week

JALANDHAR : Over 100 unauthorised marriage palaces in the region may be closed down as the Jalandhar Development Authority (JDA) is set to take a final call on the matter this week.

As many as 194 marriage palaces in the region had applied for regularisation, out of which 61 are from Jalandhar, 78 from Kapurthala and 55 from Hoshiarpur. Nine applications have already been rejected. Around 22 marriage palaces were sealed in December for violating building bylaws.

Chief administrator of JDA Girish Dayalan said the authority will decide on clearance to marriage palaces, which had applied under the regularisation policy at a meeting to be held on February 14. “Applications of those who have applied for regularisation without submitting the requisite documents will be rejected. Whereas, we will expedite the process of providing clearance to those who are waiting to get NOC from other government departments,” said Girish Dayalan.

“We will be holding a meeting with the department’s officers who are yet to give NOC to the applicants,” he added.

MC FAILS TO TAKE ACTION

The municipal corporation (MC) had failed to take any action against mushrooming of the marriage palaces.

While the building branch department of the civic body had earlier said it will cut the water and sewerage connection of the establishments violating building bylaws, no action has been taken so far. Since 2012, when the first-ever regularisation policy for marriage palaces was issued by the state under the SAD-BJP regime, the JDA had received 1,039 applications for regularisation out of which only 109 applications were regularised. The MC has shortlisted 18 marriage palaces after the Punjab and Haryana high court’s direction.

AS MANY AS 194 MARRIAGE PALACES IN THE REGION HAD APPLIED FOR REGULARISATION