Shillong, Oct 30: The East Khasi Hills district administration has tightened the clearance process for fishing competitions, making joint inspections by concerned agencies and detailed police deployment plans mandatory to prevent traffic congestion and inconvenience to the public.
Popular fishing competitions offering big prize money can draw in thousands of eager fishermen plus friends, family and other spectators who want to enjoy the sight. There have been cases of roads being blocked, even to emergency vehicles, and farmland trampled upon during such contests.
Deputy Commissioner Abhilash Baranwal said the administration had introduced a set of conditions for granting permission to such events following concerns over traffic disruptions caused by large gatherings of participants and spectators.
He said the earlier practice of obtaining separate no-objection certificates (NOCs) from the local dorbar and Block Development Officer (BDO), followed by individual inspections, had been replaced with a joint inspection based on a standardised template.
“The first procedural change we have made is that we are now insisting on a joint inspection with a predetermined template. The template is quite exhaustive and takes care of everything. Only after receiving the report in that format do we proceed further,” Baranwal said.
The administration is also seeking a detailed traffic management and deployment plan from the police before granting permission, particularly to assess the number of traffic personnel required to manage the additional vehicular movement.
Baranwal said simultaneous permissions would not be granted for two fishing competitions, while lucky draws would also be prohibited during such events to limit participation.
He said the administration could not impose a blanket ban on fishing competitions if they were being organised legally, but would ensure that such events did not come at the cost of public convenience.
“One of the biggest problems is that all these people who come for the fishing competition leave at once,” he said, adding that the DC’s office was working with the Superintendent of Police to explore ways of staggering the exit of vehicles after the events.
The administration has also made it mandatory for fishing competitions to be held away from National Highways, with organisers required to ensure that vehicles are not parked along highways or approach roads leading to the venues.
Baranwal said permission would be granted only after the administration was satisfied that the proposed venue had adequate space and parking facilities to accommodate the expected turnout.
He added that the conditions could be further revised depending on the situation and feedback received from the ground, with the administration looking to introduce additional safeguards wherever necessary.
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