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Updated September 15th, 2021 at 07:01 IST

Rajasthan govt passes bill making misbehaviour with tourists cognizable offence

The Rajasthan Assembly on Monday, passed the Rajasthan Tourism Trade (Facilitation and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2021 with a voice vote.

Reported by: Apoorva Kaul
Rajasthan
Image: Twitter/@My_Rajasthan | Image:self
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The Rajasthan government on Monday passed an amendment bill in the state assembly to insert a new section 27-A in the Rajasthan Tourism Trade (Facilitation and Regulation) Act, 2010, according to PTI. As per the new amendment bill, any misbehaviour with tourists will now be a cognisable offence in Rajasthan. At the same time, if the misbehaviour is repeated, it will be a non-bailable offence. 

The Rajasthan Assembly passed the Rajasthan Tourism Trade (Facilitation and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2021 with a voice vote. According to the new section 27-A inserted in the Rajasthan Tourism Trade (Facilitation and Regulation) Act, 2010, the offence will be cognizable and bailable. In addition, if the offence in sub-section 3 of section 13 is repeated, it will be non-bailable in sub-section 4 of section 13. 

Misbehaviour with tourists now cognisable offence 

Govind Singh Dotasra, the Minister of State for Tourism in the Assembly said that the legislation was brought in 2010 to improve tourism and prevent misbehaviour with tourists. He added that the legislation did not mention whether the punishment was bailable or non-bailable, so it had to be amended. Furthermore, he informed that the state government had set up police stations in Jaipur and Udaipur to monitor touting incidents. He said that the cases were filed in 2016 and challans were also submitted. However, the accused in January 2017 went to High Court, which quashed an FIR because the offences were not specifically provided in the Act as cognisable. 

The decision of the government has been welcomed by the Rajasthan Association of Tour Operators. Sanjay Kaushik, secretary of Rajasthan Association of Tour Operators, told PTI strict action against undesirable elements is necessary to make the tourists feel safe in the state. He said that the touting activities disturb the tourists and malign the image of the whole industry, according to PTI. He further added the problem of touts called "lapkas" locally, which mainly exists in Jaipur and Udaipur. He claimed that the lapkas pose as tourist guides and mislead tourists into shopping to get a commission. Sunita Sharma, a national-level tourist guide and executive member of the Tourist Federation of India, stated that the touts extort money from tourists and hence strict action was a requirement against them. 

Image: Twitter/@My_Rajasthan

Inputs from PTI

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Published September 15th, 2021 at 07:01 IST

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