The Itanagar Municipal Corporation (IMC) has directed all hotels and restaurants in the Arunachal Pradesh capital to remove references to specific animal meats, including pork, beef, chicken and mutton, from their trade licences and signboards, warning of legal action if they fail to comply within 10 days.
In an order issued on Tuesday, March 31, the IMC said several establishments had been obtaining trade licences with names explicitly referring to particular animal meats, a practice it said was “inappropriate and inconsistent with prevailing norms and sensitivities concerning animal welfare and public decency.”
Invoking powers under the Arunachal Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act, 2019, the civic body directed that all existing trade licences bearing such nomenclature be revised to reflect “general and appropriate business names.”
Owners have also been asked to update their signboards and promotional materials accordingly.
The IMC said that no new trade licences would henceforth be issued to establishments whose names carry references to any specific animal meat. Non-compliance within the stipulated 10-day period, the order warned, would invite action under relevant laws and bye-laws.
The order was issued by IMC Joint Commissioner Datum Gadi.
