With the Chennai Corporation receiving the largest number of applications ever for erecting hoardings, stakeholders are keeping their fingers crossed, wondering if a sudden increase in hoardings would modify the city skyline, offering additional revenue through advertisement tax for civic projects, increasing the risk during a cyclone or distracting motorists along arterial roads.
More hoardings are expected to be put up this month, if the committee of officials constituted to give licence clears around 400 applications received for erecting hoardings at a meeting on Wednesday, the first time after the model code of conduct for elections was lifted. “Currently, just 43 hoardings have received a valid licence in the city,” said an official. Most of them had received licence from the Collectorate before August 30, 2016, the day the powers were transferred to the Greater Chennai Corporation.
The Chennai Corporation has so far given licences for just six hoardings after the formal transfer. The licences have been given only in Chetpet Ecopark area. Of the 93 applications, 87 were rejected, as they violated rules.
According to estimates by ward-level officials, ₹200 crore could be generated in revenue per year through advertisement tax in 200 wards of the Chennai Corporation. But the Chennai Corporation is concerned about the safety of the hoardings during a disaster such as cyclone. “The metal sheets may cause injury to residents and motorists during a cyclone and winds of high speed. The design of a hoarding should be such that it withstands cyclone. The hoarding should not obstruct the road. Many urban planners are of the opinion that the government should not try to permit hoardings even if it generates revenue. Hoardings are an eyesore. Everything is getting hidden because of the hoarding, obstructing wind, ventilation to buildings,” said S.Santhanam, former member-Chief Urban Planner, CMDA.
As Chennai Corporation Commissioner D. Karthikeyan on Saturday through video conferencing asked all zonal level officials to focus on generating revenue for speeding up civic projects, zonal level officials confess they are planning to facilitate more hoardings in their areas. However, stretches such as Kathipara flyover-Airport will not have hoardings because of the Airport restrictions. Neighbourhoods of cantonment areas such as St.Thomas Mount will not have hoardings either. Industrial areas also will have fewer hoardings. Neighbourhoods of heritage buildings and places of worship also will not have hoardings.
