To bring the hospitality industry on track for the economical revival of Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday gave green signals to operate 24X7 as requirement  of tourism licences for running restaurants will be removed. Importantly, the Excise department agreed to review the existing policy of a 10 percent automatic increase in the license fees every year.

Delhi government will also constitute a technical committee which in ten days will examine ways to enhance fire safety and simplifying norms in Connaught Place and heritage sites like - Khan market , without the need to make structural changes to the existing restaurants. Based on the recommendations of the committee, the CM will decide on the application of uniform fire safety norms in Delhi.

Kejriwal met with industrials and said the process has initiated to abolish police licenses and health trade licenses from local bodies for restaurants.

With this decision, now as per the major amendments planned under Excise policy and rules to restaurants, restaurants to be allowed to pay their license fee by 31st March and they can make interest-free quarterly payments instead of half-yearly payments.

Interacting with National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI),Kejriwal said, "Delhi's restaurants are the pride of Delhi and provide employment to lakhs of people. I have directed all the respective departments to remove unnecessary hassles in the smooth running of restaurants in Delhi.”

After reviewing the letter written by the FSSAI addressing the Municipal Corporations to cease the further issuing of licenses and directed the officials to do the same, Kejriwal instructed that the health trade licenses, which are issued by the Municipal Corporations to the restaurant industries should be abolished within 10 days.

The NRAI body also requested the abolishment of the police licenses since restaurants are a part of the retail sector and no other retail establishment is required to obtain a police license.

Kejriwal ensures a decision to provide relief to the restaurants from police licenses will soon be taken after discussing concerned stakeholders.

Riyaaz Amlani, a restaurateur and an NRAI member, said, "Restaurants are one of the key sectors for employment generation in the city with lakhs of people employed in this industry in Delhi. It is currently one of the most over-regulated industries, that requires multiple NOCs and duplication of licenses. The restaurant industry is one of the most impacted industries in Delhi. These measures will provide the necessary measures and the boost that we need, and unleash the employment potential. By deregulating the industry, more restaurants will open up which will generate more employment and help the tourism industry. A lot of the most visited cities in the world are known for their nightlife and restaurants."

Deputy CM and Finance Minister, Manish Sisodia, directed the restaurants to be able to pay their excise by March 31from the existing deadline of  February 28 and for them to make quarterly license fee payments without any interest.

It was decided that other relevant suggestions related to amendments in Excise regulations will be considered to be included in a new policy currently under preparation, permitting the extension of the operating timings of the restaurants on the weekends till 3 AM.

Decisions were also taken in meeting to immediately amend archaic Excise rules so as to permit service in open areas, balconies, verandahs,  without any additional fee, to permit additional dispensing counters in the licensed premises without any additional fees, to permit branding within the licensed premises, to permit licenses for all types of music, including DJs, Live Bands, and Karaoke, to abolish the requirement of a designated liquor store and to allow the stock to be kept anywhere in the licensed premises.

Earlier , the Delhi Pollution Control Committe ( DPCC ) had exempted restaurants with less than 100 seats from the need to mandatorily install Effluent Treatment Plants (ETPs).

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) had however issued recent guidelines requiring the installation of ETP for restaurants consisting more than 36 seats.

Given the extreme space constraints in and around many small restaurants, it was agreed at the meeting that DPCC will write to the CPCB with a request to revert back to the earlier decision by DPCC exempting the requirement for a dedicated Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) for restaurants below 100 seating capacity.

“DPCC will issue a clarification to the MCDs on permissibility of Wood charcoal in the grills and tandoors of the restaurants and to ensure that harassment of the restaurants be stopped on this front,” a government official said.