Kolkata Municipal Corporation Orders All Shops to Display Signboards in Bengali by February 2025

Kolkata : Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has issued an order mandating that all commercial establishments in the city must display signboards in Bengali, along with any other languages. The deadline for compliance has been set for February 21, 2025. All shops, restaurants, and other businesses must ensure that their signboards feature Bengali text by this date.

Focus on Promoting Bengali Language

According to the city secretary, Swapna Kundu, the KMC is in contact with shop and restaurant owners to ensure that their names and other details are displayed in Bengali, in addition to other languages. In October, Trinamool Congress councillor Biswarup Day raised this issue in a KMC session, emphasizing the importance of using Bengali alongside other languages on public and private offices’ signboards, as well as in all municipal notifications, letters, and documents.

Proposal Follows Central Government’s Decision

This proposal comes after the central government’s decision to grant classical language status to Bengali, along with Assamese, Marathi, Pali, and Prakrit. Previously, Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim urged private advertising agencies and shopkeepers to include Bengali in their signboards. He stated, “I am not against the use of Hindi, English, or other languages in banners, signboards, and communication tools, but Bengali should also be included alongside them.”

Similar Move in 2007

It is worth mentioning that the Kolkata Municipal Corporation had initiated a similar measure in 2007, under then-Mayor Vikas Ranjan Bhattacharya, who issued notices to shop owners to ensure the use of Bengali on signboards. However, the implementation of that order was not successful at the time.