The Asansol and Durgapur municipal corporations run by the Trinamool Congress has made Bengali mandatory in signage from January 1, 2020. The decision is viewed as a bid to woo Bengalis in the two towns which have a large number of Hindi speakers.
The Asansol electorate has 45 per cent Hindi speakers, while it is over 25 per cent in Durgapur. Civic authorities in both the towns put up fresh nameplates of officials, functionaries and councillors in Bengali outside their offices.
Asansol and Durgapur are located close to the Jharkhand border. Both the towns have Hindi-speaking migrants from Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
A similar development was seen in Bengaluru too, where all commercial establishments have been directed to inscribe at least 60 per cent of their signboards in Kannada by December 30. If they fail to do so, a penalty will be levied, depending on the size of the board. The civic body can levy up to Rs 10,000 in penalty and exceed in some cases.
