Buildings defaced, but HDMC turns a blind eye

Hubballi: Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation (HDMC) has taken up several initiatives to maintain cleanliness but defacing of walls and public places remains rampant in the twin cities.
Although walls of government buildings, hospitals, schools, colleges and electric poles have been defaced with stickers, bills and posters of political parties and advertisements of private companies, the civic authorities do not seem to have noticed them.

The irony is the compound wall of the HDMC building itself is defaced. Many companies, schools, colleges, and nurseries have pasted posters on the walls near railway station, at Vidyanagar, on Lamington Road, at Deshpande Nagar, Keshwapur, Gokul Road, Karwar Road, Old Hubballi and many other places.

When Siddalingayya Hiremath was the HDMC commissioner in 2017, he had slapped a notice to a computer agency for sticking bills on a wall on Gokul Road after it was highlighted on social media. The fine had impact and for some days posters on walls disappeared. However, the lethargic attitude of HDMC officials prompted commercial establishments, advertising agencies and cinema houses to deface the public places again.

HDMC public relations officer S C Bewoor admitted that stickers, posters and publicity material are appearing on public walls again. Recently the commissioner issued strict orders to all zonal officials to initiate action against defacing public walls, he added.

Ramesh S, a social activist, said there was no fear among people about the law or about facing any kind of stern action from civic authorities for defacing public places. “The law enforcing agencies should become active. There is a need for exclusive patrolling teams in each ward of the twin cities. They should ensure not only remove illegal stickers but also be given power to lodge complaints,” he added.