Cuttack, Oct. 31: The municipal corporation has decided not to grant licence to 48 kalyan mandaps or banquet halls, which do not have parking space. The applications of the owners have been rejected.

"We are implementing a new policy to regulate the functioning of kalyan mandaps. The guidelines formulated for the first time has defined the eligibility criteria for a licence to run a banquet hall," municipal commissioner Gyana Das said.

Field inspection for grant of licence has been completed on the information supplied in all the 114 applications received by the corporation from kalyan mandap owners.

"In the first phase, scrutiny of 86 cases has been done and of them 48 applications have been rejected," additional commissioner Suman Behera told The Telegraph. The rejection means that the owners would not be able to run the kalyan mandaps till they come up with the necessary parking space. The new guideline had made earmarking 40 per cent of built-up area for parking purpose "a statutory requirement".

"But we have allowed applications of kalyan mandaps, which have been functioning for at least five years and have 20 per cent of the built-up area for parking purposes on the condition that there shall be no parking on public roads," said Behera, who is also the nodal officer for implementation of the new policy.

Decision on the remaining 28 kalyan mandaps will be taken in the second phase after completion of scrutiny of their applications along with the field reports, the officer said.

The civic body had rejected the applications of all the 13 kalyan mandaps, including the popular Windsor Palace that had come up in Markatnagar, the satellite township developed under plotted scheme by Cuttack Development Authority. Marriage halls had been a matter of concern as they create traffic chaos. The approach roads to these kalyan mandaps - mostly used for marriage celebrations - were also not suitable for parking vehicles.

Head of the standing committee for licence & appeal, Bikash Ranjan Behera, said: "We are not averse to reconsider the applications of those owners who can come up with parking facility for their kalyan mandaps on land on rent or lease."

Under the new rule, owners are expected to install CCTV cameras, fire extinguishers and ensure that there is no noise pollution beyond prescribed time and decibel.

"The owners will also have to pay annual users fee for solid waste management in advance and deploy security personnel to facilitate free flow of traffic in the area," the standing committee head said.

Among the kalyan mandaps whose applications for licence are pending include the city's leading banquet halls at Barabati Stadium - Tendulkar Bhavan, Club House, OCA Club, Barabati Palace, Barabati Guest House and Horse Gate House.