The government has withdrawn a bill on travel planning and operation services, which was sent to the Parliament to make tour operators unlicensed without a licence.

The bill was introduced in the parliament on behalf of the government by PNC MP Hassan Zareer.

When the bill was withdrawn, the first reading of the bill had been read out in the parliament on March 12. The debate on the bill could not begin in the parliament as it could not be convened without meeting the quorum on the day the bill was placed on the agenda.

Speaker Of The Parliament Mohamed Aslam announced that the government had withdrawn the bill under Article 92(a) of the Rules of Parliament yesterday.

The bill lays down licensing norms for tourism-related travel service providers in the maldives and the standards for such travel planning and operation. According to the Bill, a strong legal framework should be put in place to regulate and monitor the service providers.

According to the bill, only licensed persons will be able to plan and operate tourism-related trips.