Nagaland government cracks down on exclusive trade permits

Published on May 26, 2025

KOHIMA — Nagaland government on Monday issued a directive prohibiting all the municipal and town councils across the state from issuing restrictive trade permits.
The government’s restriction comes in response to complaints received from NGOs with regard to issue of exclusive permits by the municipal and town councils for supply of goods and services to a single entity.
Earlier, the Business Association of Nagas and the Dimapur Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) had flagged unfair trade practices carried out by the local municipal bodies and called out the government’s inaction on the same.

In a letter addressed to all the CEOs/EOs/administrators of the urban local bodies, T Nchumbemo Odyuo, Additional Secretary to the government of Nagaland, directed all the ULBs to advocate free and fair-trade practices and endeavour to provide credible municipal governance and best municipal practices by way of providing fair opportunity and equal platform for all public to carry out their trade and business in a peaceful manner.
In addition, the ULBs were directed to immediately introduce remedial measures to curtail and obviate such practices. The ULBs should refrain from any practices encouraging exclusive permit system for supply of goods and services to a single entity in any manner, it stated.
In the event of such cases being in operation or poised for operation, ULBs should take immediate action to review and withdraw such tenders, orders and permits, causing or likely to cause restrictive trade practices, the letter added.
“Any such act committed at any hierarchy of the ULBs thereby causing such restrictive trade practices should be viewed seriously and should have the same connotation as defined in Section 2 (41) (i) & (ii) of the Consumer Protection Act 2019.
“As mandated bodies, ULBs should strive to maintain credible integrity in all aspects of functioning and which should be within the ambit of the Nagaland Municipal Act, 2023 and other related extant laws,” it further added.