Illegal flexes dumped near Malleswaram BBMP office I Pushkar V
BENGALURU:Emphasising on the need for a uniform policy to deal with unauthorised hoardings/flexes/banners, etc, across state, the High Court on Tuesday orally asked the Advocate General to get instructions from the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) and Urban Development Departments (UDD) on the issue.
During the hearing on a batch of public interest petitions against unauthorised hoardings/flexes in city, a division bench of Chief Justice Dinesh Maheshwari and Justice R Devdas asked Advocate General Uday Holla whether there was any uniform policy on removal of unauthorised flexes/banners/buntings, etc., in all urban local bodies and grama panchayats in state.
“We have started with Bengaluru. Ultimately, there should be a system for the entire state, beyond the city. Not only ULBs, there are bodies (GPs) other than ULBs. Get instructions,” the court ordered. The court further said, “...we have also taken note of the fact that the task of dealing with flexes/ hoardings etc., may not remain limited to BBMP and there may be other local bodies in the larger Bengaluru Metropolitan region, which may also be required to be heard in this matter”.
Uday Holla told the court that he will make his submissions regarding local bodies which may have a direct role in the matter, after taking appropriate instructions from the secretaries of the RDPR as also the UDD, on August 31, the next date of hearing.
When the court sought details of the GP limits under which Kempegowda International Airport Road falls, as there are flexes on the road leading to it, the AG said there are a total of nine GPs, including four in Devanahalli limits. Referring to the larger urban agglomeration of the Bengaluru Metropolitan Area, the court asked the AG to inform whether these GPs had uniform advertisement policy and proper methodology to curb the menace of hoardings.
On Chief Secy’s affidavit
During the hearing, the court asked the advocate general about the affidavit filed by the Chief Secretary stating that a circular will be issued to the authorities not to keep papers pending for more than seven days, and observed, “Clearing papers is the entire governmental process. But nearly 25-30% litigations come before this court saying that their representations are pending for the last one year, etc. Why that kind of litigation at all? If you (authorities) start attending papers, several things will run well”.
