NEW DELHI: Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena has withdrawn the power of granting licences to cinema halls and theatres from Delhi Police and authorised the city government’s Revenue Department as the licensing authority.
According to the officials, the objective of the order is to ease the licensing processes and create a conducive business atmosphere sans red tape in Delhi. A committee headed by the district magistrate will have the authority to grant licenses to the cinema halls, multiplexes. The committee comprising the deputy commissioner of the respective MCD zone, a structural engineering/building expert nominated by the secretary of PWD, a fire safety expert, an electrical system expert will make recommendations for the grant of such licenses, the official circular said.
A representative of the District Disaster Management Authority will also be nominated by the district magistrate.
The move follows the Lieutenant Governor’s recent major decision to take the powers of issuing licenses for seven categories of businesses—swimming pools, eateries, hotels, guest houses, discotheques, video game parlours, amusement parks, and auditoriums—from Delhi Police.
In an order issued by Raj Niwas on Friday, the LG has issued directions to the Delhi Police Commissioner to direct all the officials concerned to refrain from dealing with matters related to the grant of licenses under the Cinematograph Act, with immediate effect.