The Himachal Pradesh Tourist Development and Registration (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which aims to change nine provisions of the 2002 Act and mandate the registration of all tourist units, including home stays, was passed by the Himachal Pradesh Assembly on Thursday, 21st Dec 2023. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu introduced the (Amendment) Bill, 2023, in the assembly on Wednesday, 20th Dec 2023.
All operating units would have to apply for registration within 30 days of the amendment bill’s provisions taking effect, but they wouldn’t be charged a price until the current registration license expires.
New units would need to submit an application for registration, and unregistered units that operate illegally would be subject to legal action. After completing all requirements, the tourism units must be registered within ninety days.
A provision of six months’ imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10,000 had been made for the units running without registration under the 2002 Act. The amendment Bill seeks to do away with imprisonment, but the amount of fine would be increased to INR one lakh.
The 2002 Himachal Pradesh tourist Development and Registration Act needed revisions since the tourist industry has experienced significant changes in terms of the range of activities it offers and the number of people engaged in related activities.
