Bengali signboards mandatory for Kolkata shops, orders civic body

NEW DELHI: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has mandated that all commercial establishments in the city must include Bengali, alongside other languages on their signboards.

According to an official, the civic body aims to ensure the widespread use of Bengali in public signage, setting February 21, 2025, as a tentative deadline to implement this policy.

Municipal secretary Swapan Kundu said that the corporation is actively engaging with shop, restaurant, and business owners to facilitate compliance, ensuring that names and information about their establishments are displayed in Bengali in addition to any other languages used.

The initiative aligns with a proposal made in October by TMC Councillor Biswarup Dey, who pointed out that all signboards in public and private offices should feature Bengali text. Dey also advocated for publishing all notifications, letters, and documents of the KMC in Bengali.

His proposal came after the Centre's decision to recognise Bengali as classical language on October 3, with Assamese, Marathi, Pali, and Prakrit.

KMC Mayor Firhad Hakim has echoed the importance of promoting Bengali, saying, "I have nothing against the use of Hindi, English, or other languages in banners, festoons, signages, and such modes of communication. But Bengali should also be there along with the others." He also voiced his intention to urge private advertising agencies and businesses to adopt this practice.

In a similar effort earlier in 2007, then-Mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya issued a similar directive for mandatory Bengali usage in signboards. However, the initiative was not fully implemented at the time.