NEW DELHI: Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena has approved the operation of 55 more e-commerce and retail outlets round-the-clock in the city, months after he gave a nod to over 300 establishments to operate 24x7, officials said on Monday.
These 55 outlets situated at various locations in Delhi include e-commerce, retail garments and accessories outlets. The proposal, given by the Labour Department and endorsed by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, was made to exempt another 55 establishments from Sections 14, 15 and 16 of the Delhi Shops and Establishments Act, 1954.
Their round-the-clock functioning will facilitate employment generation and promote a positive business environment for future investment in the national capital, it added. “Taking grave exception to the delays ranging up to seven years in disposing of applications for exemption by the Labour Department, the LG in October last year noted on file that the basic purpose of according exemptions under Section 14, 15 and 16 of the Delhi Shops & Establishment Act, 1954 is to enable the various establishments to carry on with their businesses on a 24x7 basis,” a statement released from the L-G House read.
Officials said that the L-G flagged the “unprofessional attitude and lack of due diligence” on the part of the Labour Department on the subject matter and underlined that some pick-and-choose policy has been adopted by the department in processing such applications, which could be indicative of corrupt practices.
They also said that Saxena noted the inordinate delay in the processing of such routine applications also negatively affects the confidence/sentiments of the business community at large. To ensure transparent and effective monitoring, an online system has been developed for the receipt of applications for exemption under sections 14, 15 and 16 of the Delhi Shops and Establishment Act, 1954.
