The Karnataka government passed a bill on Thursday mandating that businesses must use 60% Kannada on their signboards.
The Kannada Language Comprehensive Development (Amendment) Bill, 2024, was introduced in the House during the current
budget session to make changes to the 2022 Act.
On Wednesday, it was passed by a voice vote. Now, it will be sent to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot for approval.
Karnataka makes a new move
The bill says that in signboards, Kannada should be at the top and take up 60% of the space for names.
This rule applies to different places like shops, factories, offices, hospitals, and hotels that are approved by the government or local authorities. 
The law also suggests changes to include the director of the Directorate of Kannada and Culture as a member, and the secretary of the Kannada Development Authority as the leader of a “State Level Committee.” This committee will be in charge of making sure the official language is used as required.
Continuous protests led to the decision
The bill follows after violent protests erupted in Bengaluru by the Karnataka Rakshana Vedika group and pro-Kannada activists
demanding 60% Kannada language on signboards.
Protestors damaged shops and tear down signboards in their demand for 60% Kannada
. During the protest, Karnataka Rakshana Vedike president T.A. Gowda was also arrested.
Protestors became furious over the presence of English language on the signboards. They tore down the English signboards and splattered them with black ink to express their anger. The protest turned extremely violent, requiring police intervention to bring it to an end.
Approximately 34,000 notices had sent to businesses for not following the rules, and the civic body has set February 28 as the deadline for them to comply.
Comments 1