In a landmark decision for the trading community of the national capital, the Delhi Cabinet has approved the formation of the Delhi Trader Welfare Board to address various challenges faced by traders.
Addressing a press conference on Wednesday, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta described the move as a significant step towards ensuring the welfare of a vital community that contributes substantially to the city’s economic growth.
“Until now, there was no dedicated platform to address the day-to-day issues faced by traders in Delhi,” Gupta stated. She emphasized that traders, who are major contributors to the city’s revenue, have long lacked a formal mechanism for voicing their concerns.
According to the Chief Minister, the board will be registered under the Societies Registration Act of 1860. She added that this development reflects the government’s strong commitment to the trader community.
“This step will not only work towards the welfare, social security, and economic empowerment of traders, but it will also be a milestone in transforming Delhi into the most business-friendly capital in the country,” Gupta said.
The board will facilitate a sustained dialogue between the government and the trading community. It will also extend benefits such as health insurance, financial assistance, and access to other social security schemes.
The body will comprise fifteen members and will function under the chairmanship of the Industry Minister. It will include officials from various departments and nine non-governmental trader representatives from different sectors.
“This initiative marks a major step towards realizing the vision of Sashakt Vyapari – Samriddh Bharat (Empowered Traders – Prosperous India), as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Gupta said.
She added, “The government’s commitment is clear — to make Delhi a business-friendly, transparent, and employment-generating capital.”
Recently, the Delhi government took another major step to promote ease of doing business by transferring licensing responsibilities for commercial establishments such as hotels, motels, guest houses, restaurants, swimming pools, auditoriums, video game parlors, discotheques, and amusement parks to the municipal corporation and other relevant departments.
Gupta noted that for years, the Delhi Police had been burdened with licensing duties, which affected their core law and order responsibilities.
“In line with the Prime Minister’s vision, our government has always followed the principle of ‘Minimum Government, Maximum Governance.’ This decision is a direct outcome of that philosophy,” she said.