Keeping your dog unleashed in public may invite a larger penalty under Jan Vishwas Bill 2.0

New Delhi: The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2025, introduced by commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal on Monday in the Lok Sabha, proposes to increase the penalty for not keeping a dog on a leash in public, grant a 30-day grace period after licence expiry, and ease vehicle registration rules under the Motor Vehicles Act.

The Bill, approved by the Cabinet, seeks to amend 355 provisions across 16 central Acts covering 10 ministries and departments, including proposals to decriminalize 288 provisions and rationalize penalties in another 67.

The Bill proposes amendments to several legislations to decriminalize minor offences and ease compliance. As per the Bill, the penalty for unleashed dogs in the national capital has been revised, raising the fine for dogs without a metal leash and collar from ₹50 to ₹1,000 after the first warning.

Additionally, 20 amendments are proposed under the Motor Vehicles Act to ease compliance for citizens. These include allowing vehicle registration across the entire state instead of limiting it to a particular jurisdiction, providing a 30-day grace period after licence expiry during which it will remain valid, and extending the reporting period for cancellation of vehicle registration from 14 days to 30 days.

The Bill also introduces amendments aimed at promoting Ease of Living. More than 40 provisions under the NDMC Act are set to be amended, replacing the old Rateable Value Method of property tax collection with the Unit Area Method, a formula-based system intended to simplify assessment, reduce subjectivity, and improve compliance.

The Road Transport Corporations Act, 1950, will also be amended. The current fine of up to ₹500 for breach of state government rules will be substituted with a fixed penalty of the same amount.

Under the MSME Development Act, Section 27 has been amended so that instead of imposing fines for the first instance of violation, only a warning will now be issued. Mint reported this on 7 July.

Goyal also requested that the Bill be referred to a Select Committee, which will submit its report by the opening day of the next Parliament session. According to a commerce ministry statement, the Lok Sabha Speaker will choose the committee members, and the panel will submit its report by the first day of the next session.

“This is another step in the government’s commitment to reducing compliance burden and ensuring a more business-friendly environment,” a senior official said, noting that the legislation builds on the Jan Vishwas Act, 2023, which decriminalized 183 provisions in 42 Central Acts.

The 2025 Bill extends this framework further by introducing measures such as advisories or warnings for first-time contraventions in 76 cases, replacing imprisonment clauses for minor, technical or procedural defaults with monetary penalties, and empowering designated officers to impose penalties through administrative mechanisms to reduce the judicial burden.

The proposed law also introduces a provision for an automatic 10% increase in fines and penalties every three years to maintain deterrence without requiring fresh legislative amendments, as per the ministry statement.

In addition to business-related provisions, the Bill covers consumer-facing aspects, with 67 amendments under the New Delhi Municipal Council Act, 1994, and the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, aimed at improving ease of living.

Among the 16 Acts covered, four—the Tea Act, 1953, Legal Metrology Act, 2009, Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940—had already been part of the 2023 exercise and are proposed for further decriminalization.

As per the statement, the new Bill reflects the policy thrust of “minimum government, maximum governance,” seeking to create a balance between regulatory oversight and business convenience.

Mint reported on 31 March that the government had been preparing to decriminalize more than 100 offences under various laws by the end of this year to improve investor confidence and unlock potential for faster economic growth.