Rajasthan, keen to make life easier for residents and businesses, says minor violations will attract fines and not jail

The minister said that the ordinance removes criminal provisions from 11 Acts. For example, he said that under the Rajasthan Forest Act, 1953, there is a provision for imprisonment for grazing cattle on forest land. Until now, the punishment for this offense was imprisonment up to six months, a fine of up to Rs 500, or both. Following the amendment, a fine of Rs 5,000 will be imposed for this violation. The guilty will also be required to pay compensation, as determined by law, for any damage to the forest. This amendment will benefit tribals and villagers who inadvertently enter forest land while grazing cattle, he said.

He also said that Rajasthan State Aid to Industries Act, 1961, provided for imprisonment for minor procedural offenses against those in charge of an industry receiving assistance, such as failing to produce books, accounts, or other documents for inspection. These criminal provisions are now being removed from the Act and limited to fines.

Next, he said that in the Jaipur Water Supply and Sewerage Board Act, 2018, there was a provision of imprisonment for wastage of water, misuse, use for non-domestic purposes, obstruction in the sewerage line of the Board, making connection to the sewer line without written permission, etc., which is being removed and limited to the provision of fine.

In another important decision, the deadline for application for compassionate appointment has been extended.

Patel said that under the current rules, the dependent of a deceased government employee has to apply for compassionate appointment within 90 days from the date of death of the government employee. However, the cabinet has decided to increase the time limit for applying for compassionate appointment from 90 days to 180 days. This amendment will provide sufficient time to the dependent of the deceased government employee to prepare various documents and affidavits for compassionate appointment, he said.

The cabinet also approved the Non Resident Rajasthani (NRR) Policy to increase the contribution and engagement of overseas Rajasthanis, while Rajasthan Trade Promotion Policy has been approved to provide more opportunities to small businessmen and that the Rajasthan Tourism Policy has been approved to promote investment in tourism.

Minister Godara said that the Rajasthan Trade Promotion Policy is aimed at the over 10.5 lakh retailers in the state and that the policy is aimed at providing these small traders with equal opportunities in relation to the larger businesses, e-commerce platforms, and logistics networks. The cabinet also approved a proposal to provide an additional 15 acres of land for Kishangarh Airport.