Trade licence on the spot

For many in the port city, getting a trade licence from the Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) used to be time consuming and difficult.

Not just the allegations of harassment and bribery ran rife, many also had to wait for almost a month for their licences.

But not any longer.

With the inception of a new method called “Spot Trade Licence”, now businesses are getting their licences within hours as the revenue officials are setting up booths at markets and providing necessary services to the businesses directly.

The corporation kicked off the new service on January 14 in the Baizid area aiming to continue it till the middle of this month.

Before, in order to obtain a trade licence, a businessman had to fill up an application first. Then the revenue officials would go through it and also visit the establishment for verification.

Afterwards, they would file a report based on their inspection. Then the report had to be approved by the high-ups. The process usually took more than a month, said many of the business owners.

Contacted, Dr Muhammad Mustafizur Rahman, CCC chief revenue officer, said, “The old method was time-consuming and there was a scope for corruption. I thought of a new method that would reduce corruption to zero and expedite the process.”

“Under the new process, a business owner can get the licence right away after paying a fee. One can also renew his or her trade licence on the spot,” he added.

Ali Nur, a business owner at Shah Amanat Market, said he got the licence without any complications.

Mansur Chowdhury, general secretary of Shah Amanat Business Association, said, “The CCC brought the service to our doorsteps. It's a great relief for businesses... Earlier, getting a licence was hectic. A business owner had to go to CCC at least three times...”

There are 99,100 businesses in the port city while 68,000 already got their trade licenses, according to a recent CCC survey.

This year, the city corporation is planning to issue trade licences to the rest of the businesses with an aim to realise TK 27 crore from licence fees.

“If needed, we'll continue the Spot Trade Licence process,” said CCC chief revenue officer.