KOCHI:
The Industries department today clarified that a meat stall at Kaloor was closed by the Kochi Municipal Corporation after it was found functioning without proper licence to conduct retail trade and the mandatory clearance from the Kerala State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB).
Dr K Ellangovan, Principal Secretary, Department of Industries, sought a report from the General Manager, District Industries Centre, Ernakulam, following campaign in the social media that the meat shop with proper license was forcibly closed. Action against the retail outlet with MSME status that permits no retail trade followed complaints from the local residents that the shop had been selling meat without licence since its inception.
According to the report, ‘Farm Fresh Chicken and Meat Centre’ in Kaloor had not submitted the self-certification application (as per per circular no: PCB/T4/115/97 dt 17/03/2017) to KSPCB before running the business involving processing and sale of ‘keema’ (minced meat). The illegality, amid a public complaint, led the police to seal its lock this week.
The closure of the shop on July 24 was based on an order by the Kochi Municipal Corporation the previous day. The report found that the proprietor had not approached KSPCB’s nodal agency to secure a self-certification that was essential for such a venture.
Instead, the stall’s owner secured a mere Acknowledgement Certificate (dated June 22) through K-Swift, the state’s single-window interface for fast and transparent clearance, after the corporation rejected an application he submitted on May 11 for licence to open the stall. The civic body’s response on June 15 cited the absence of KSPCB’s consent, prompting it to shut the unit within three days of issuing the order. The letter was served on July 23, following which a police team closed the unit the next day.
The Union Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) has barred firms which are not registered under Udyog Aadhaar Memorandum from conducting wholesale and retail trade services. Fresh Farm’ was found to have violated this clause by selling meat, which is a retail activity. While the local self-government is working on a report based on expert opinion from departments concerned, the Ernakulam District Industries Centre has sought clarification from MSME’s Development Institute in Thrissur on the exactness of the illegality on the part of the stall.
