Illegal hoardings dot roads, slack enforcement to blame

Kuldip Bhatia

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Ludhiana, February 13

It is not just on a few roads and intersections but the entire road network in the city as well as major intersections, including those in the overcrowded business centres, that illegal hoardings, bill boards and banners have been put up in blatant violation of the provisions made in the Punjab Municipal Outdoor Advertisement Policy 2018.

An MC official (requesting anonymity) said: “Lurking fear of the local political leaders or else wrath of religious institutions mostly comes in our way while acting against illegal advertisements.”

The MC has finally awarded the tender for outdoor ads to the highest bidder at Rs 27.54 crore only last month and the modalities for handing over the outdoor advertisements to the agency concerned are under process. But it would be wrong to assume that by awarding the contract (for outdoor advertisement) to an agency, the responsibility of the civic body to ensure compliance of the provisions made in the policy would be over.

If the manner in which hoardings, sign boards, banners and billboards of political parties, religious functions or cultural shows have been put up indiscriminately all across the city, including at vacant government and public sites, on roof tops and on buildings are any indication, these are in clear violations of the policy framed by the government in this regard which lays emphasis on road safety, aesthetics and no visual clutter (of sign boards) at or near intersections.

With little or no enforcement by the MC staff, the political parties (mostly the one in power), at time, even go to the extent of pasting flex sheets or banners on the road signage (direction boards) causing inconvenience to the travelling public and irritating other road users.

Even if an advertising agency has won the contract for outdoor advertisements within the city limits, the MC can, in no case, close its eyes to its responsibility for compliance of the provisions made in the government policy.

The relevant provisions lays down: “In urban local bodies (ULBs) no person shall erect, exhibit, fix or retain over any land, building, wall, hoarding, frame, post, kiosk/billboard (to be displayed on electric pole) or structure or upon or in any vehicle, any advertisement or display any advertisement for public view in any manner whatsoever in any place within the jurisdiction of the ULBs without the prior written permission of the Commissioner/EO concerned.”

The policy further says: “In ULBs the Commissioners/EOs have the powers to check on unauthorised and illegal outdoor advertising, to remove or prohibit the display of any such advertising and to impose a penalty as decided/fixed and approved by the government from time to time for non-compliance with the provisions of the policy.”

The MC Joint Commissioner, Kulpreet Singh, in charge of advertisement branch, could not be contacted for comments.