New ad policy not implemented yet

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, October 17

Even after passing of seven months, the implementation of the new advertisement policy, ‘The Punjab Municipal Outdoor Advertisement Policy 2018’, in a right manner is being delayed. The notification of the policy was issued on March 21 and the implementation of the provisions was to be ensured within two months.

The state government’s new outdoor advertisement policy was designed to financially help the debt-ridden corporations as they were given powers to take strict action against the people and companies that have installed illegal advertisements, resulting in economic loss to the civic bodies.

Under the new policy, a provision of constituting a flying squad has been kept to keep a check on illegal advertisements.

Nobody will be allowed to install hoardings on their terrace and one hoarding per floor of the shopkeeper would be allowed.

Another point that has been added to the policy is that any company which has been blacklisted will not be able to install advertisement hoardings.

According to the new rules, residents can register their complaints regarding non-compliance of provisions of the policy on the MC website. The complaint received would be redressed within three days by the commissioner concerned.

Many illegal hoardings have been installed in the city and no action has been initiated by the Municipal Corporation of Bathinda against the violators.

MCB secretary Vishal Wadhwan said, “There is not much change in the new policy but it would be implemented after the expiry of the present contract on March 31, 2019.”

Mayor Balwant Rai Nath said, “Nobody is allowed to install illegal advertisements in the city and the new policy would be implemented in the coming days.”

Punjab Municipal Outdoor Ad Policy 2018

• Implementation of the provisions to be ensured within two months. 
• Details about the nodal officer are to be available on the Municipal Corporation website.
• Information about the total number of advertisement devices permitted to be displayed on the civic body web portal.
• Citizens can register a complaint regarding non-compliance of provisions of the policy on the MC website.
• Any complaint received will be redressed within three days by the Municipal Commissioner concerned.
• Hoardings, billboards, unipoles and other advertisements are not allowed on rooftops of any type of buildings.
• If the official concerned fails to ensure compliance of the policy, the amount of revenue loss will be recovered by the state from him/her and nodal officer for dereliction of duty.
• Commissioners and EOs of the urban local bodies will submit a report to the government that in the area under their jurisdiction, there is total observation of the new policy rules