Kampung Kemensah in Ampang is a popular destination for campsites and homestays, which MPAJ's Tourism Taskforce is in the process of a legalising exercise. - FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
CAMPSITE owners and operators in Ampang Jaya, Selangor, are urged to register their businesses to prepare for licensing before the March 31 deadline.
According to the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ), only two out of an estimated 20 operators have registered with less than two weeks left for submission.
MPAJ Public Relations and Secretariat Division head Norhayati Ahmad advised operators to register to ease the licensing process.
“Once the state government has finalised the guidelines, the local councils can start issuing temporary licence permits and temporary building permits.
“A majority of the campsites are operating in the Kampung Kemensah area and we need a proper inventory of the sites,” she told StarMetro.
Kampung Kemensah near Zoo Negara is a popular camping and hiking area that offers activities such as picnics by the stream.
Norhayati said the initial registration and licensing exercise would involve campsites operating on private land, but will also include chalets and other recreational sites in the near future.
“Most of the sites are on private land but there are several that may be operating on forest or river reserves,” she said.
She added that MPAJ was working with other agencies such as the Drainage and Irrigation Department, Selangor Water Management Authority, as well as forestry department and district offices during the registration exercise.
The Selangor government had issued a directive to campsite owners to register their businesses for the purpose of licensing by the end of the month.
This follows the Dec 16 landslide in Batang Kali and the need to regulate campsites.
During a Jan 31 press conference, state local government, public transportation and new village development committee chairman Ng Sze Han had said among the required documents was a survey plan, which must be obtained from a licenced surveyor to indicate the exact location and the area’s geographical condition.
On March 13, StarMetro reported that five out of the 12 local councils in Selangor had received 47 registrations.
Selangor, which has about 200 campsites, is the first state to implement campsite licensing.
