KMC mandates ‘amusement permission’ for cultural events by private bodies

Kolkata: To bolster its revenues through amusement fees, Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has mandated that ‘amusement permission’ needs to be sought by its other departments before giving approvals for organising social, cultural and commercial events by non-governmental organisations within the civic body’s jurisdiction.

A circular issued in this regard laid out a standard operating procedure (SOP). An official said that such a move seeks to ensure collection of amusement fees for applicable events and premises to boost KMC’s financial resources.

The SOP covers social, cultural and commercial events (e.g., fairs, exhibitions, shows) organised by non-governmental organisations in KMC venues. Amusement permissions include both casual (event-specific) and permanent (annual).

The departments that would have to ensure compliance include Market, Water Supply, Parks and Squares and Advertisement, apart from the Building department.

The SOP stated that as part of the offline process for granting permission, upon receiving an application the respective department will check if the event requires amusement permission based on the Amusement Department’s item list (e.g., shows, fairs, exhibitions). If applicable and the applicant lacks the permission, they will be directed to obtain it from the Amusement Department.

A copy of the application needs to be sent to the Amusement department for simultaneous tracking. Permission will be granted only after the applicant submits a paid amusement permission fee for the specific event and venue. Application will be rejected if the permission is not produced within the event duration.

As part of the online process, the IT department will modify systems to prevent permission issuance from Market, Parks & Squares, Water Supply, or Advertisement modules without a valid amusement permission. Departments would verify permission validity online, with reciprocal access for the Amusement Department. The Building department will check for amusement permission dues upon receiving applications for new or modified building plans. After receiving an application for sanction of a new/modified building plan, it should be checking for dues against amusement permission. The Amusement department will share monthly defaulter data with the Building department. Applicants with outstanding dues will need to clear payments. Building plans would be sanctioned only after submission of paid ‘amusement permission’. Non-compliance will lead to rejection.

The IT Department will link the Building and Amusement modules to block plan sanctions without valid permissions. Both departments can verify compliance through the system.