District Collector Anshul Mishra has instructed the officials to ensure that all the unauthorised advertisement hoardings, put up in the Corporation of Madurai limits, were removed within a week and that any failure to do so voluntarily by those who had put up he had directed to initiate stern action as per the laws.
The Collector has said that unauthorised hoardings put up in many places, particularly, in Maatuthavani integrated bus stand, Periyar bus stand, Arapalayam and among other locations had come to his knowledge. This is a violation as per the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Licensing of Hoardings and Levy and Collection of Advertisement Tax Rules 2003.
The Collector, who is the licensing authority, has also the powers to cancel hoardings that had violated the norms, officials said.
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According to the Act, a plan of the hoarding to be erected indicating the height and other dimensions and the material proposed to be used as approved by a qualified engineer and other details had to be mentioned clearly while seeking license/sanction. Similarly, such approved hoardings shall be erected only parallel to the foot path or road and not across the footpath or road margin.
There are around 300 unauthorised hoardings within the city limits in different sizes and dimensions, an official press release said.
In the event of non-removal of these hoardings within the stipulated deadline, the revenue officials and the Corporation staff would jointly conduct a drive and remove them. The cost incurred in the process would be collected from those who had displayed the advertisement hoardings, Mr. Mishra said. Further, stern action as per the laws would also be initiated against those persons/groups/organisations, which had put up the unauthorised hoardings, he warned.
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On Saturday, the Collector, in a meeting presided over by Madurai Mayor V.V. Rajan Chellappa, had indicated that with the cooperation of the people of Madurai, visible change can be made.