Officials from the Town Planning wing of the Coimbatore Corporation on Tuesday removed five hoardings and support structures near the Coimbatore Airport and one place in the East Zone.
According to sources, following orders from Commissioner G. Latha, the officials dismantled and removed four hoardings – two atop buildings and two on the group at the Airport Junction on Avinashi Road.
Another hoarding was atop a building near Varadharaja Mills.
They said that the people involved in the job not only removed the hoardings but also cut the metal frames so as to prevent further advertisements being put up on the illegal structures.
The civic body was forced to take such drastic action because the people who had erected illegal structures would renew advertisements within days of the Corporation removing them from the place.
In this case, the Corporation had given the illegal advertisers due notice and sufficient time to remove the structures.
Those involved did not respond and so the civic body chose to go ahead and remove the hoardings and support structures.
The Corporation started the action against illegal hoardings sometime last week by removing two hoardings and support structures on Dr. Nanjappa Road. And, it was the first time that the Corporation cut open the metal frames.
The sources said that the Corporation had estimated that there were more than 200 hoardings that ought to be removed. The civic body would remove those hoardings in the coming days.
If the people behind those illegal hoardings attempted to re-fix the support structures and put up hoardings, the Corporation would initiate penal action.