Dharamshala shopkeepers protest trade licence fee, demand withdrawal

Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], April 12 : Scores of shopkeepers in Dharamshala shut their businesses and staged a protest on Thursday against the Municipal Corporation's decision to impose a trade license fee, calling it unnecessary and exploitative.
Organised by the Vyopar Mandal Dharamshala, the demonstration saw traders raising slogans against local authorities and elected representatives while demanding an immediate rollback of the order.
The protesting shopkeepers argued that they are already registered under the Shop and Establishment Act and questioned the rationale behind a new licensing requirement. They warned that such re-registration measures would only burden small traders without offering any tangible benefit in return. In a show of unity, shops across the market area remained closed as a form of dissent.

Rajesh Verma, a local shopkeeper participating in the protest, told ANI, "The MC officials are forcing us to obtain this licence which is wrong as we are already registered under the relevant law. They just want to gain money from the shopkeeper in the form of this trade licence. This license will not benefit the shopkeeper in anyway as it is written on the document that it's not a government paper and we cannot use it anywhere."
Shopkeepers further accused the Municipal Corporation of failing to provide basic amenities despite collecting various charges already. Verma said, "MC Dharamshala is already collecting money from us through various means but they are not providing any facilities. We are already facing problems of stray animals for which MC officials are doing nothing. There are no toilets in the market. So instead of imposing new rules they should do welfare activities."

The protest highlights a growing tension between traders and the local administration, with business owners expressing frustration over policies they see as arbitrary and insensitive to ground realities. The traders have vowed to continue their agitation unless the Municipal Corporation revokes the trade license fee mandate.