Nov. 4: Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) is mulling the introduction of a new outdoor advertising policy to curb unauthorised and randomly installed hoardings in the city.

The new policy involves introducing unipoles which will be under the GMC and individuals or advertisement agencies will have to take it on rent from the civic authority.

A unipole is a large-format billboard placed atop a single pole or a column and is frequently used in metropolitan cities in the country and abroad.

“Advertising agencies put up hoardings haphazardly across the city. The registration fee they pay to the GMC is minimal and they hardly renew it. These hoardings are eyesores. We have suggested that a new advertising policy, which will totally be under the GMC’s control, should be introduced,” said Robin Bordoloi, MLA, East Gauhati constituency and chairman of Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA).

The civic body’s suggestion was also discussed in a high-level meeting of the GMDA, GMC, traffic police and district administration officials.

The billboards that clutter the city are eyesores and unipoles can be a good substitute.

“We have a lot of unauthorised hoardings, which are a source of visual pollution. A systematic policy is needed to curb this menace,” said GMC commissioner Puru Gupta.

Unauthorised and haphazardly placed billboards can be a cause of road mishaps too. “When billboards are not placed strategically, they can be a cause of distraction for drivers. A small example is a billboard placed on the roadside that may reflect sunlight and distract drivers’ vision,” said a GMC official.

“Unipoles will also encourage revenue generation as advertisements can be put on both sides,” said the official.

Municipal officials claim that they have managed to collect revenue worth Rs 2 crore, solely from registration of the existing billboards during 2009-2010.

“The registration fee of the GMC is very minimal when compared to what advertising agencies earn for putting up billboards,” the official said.

An “invalid” billboard with fading colours and hoardings depicting events that have long taken place are not an uncommon sight either.

“Under the current system, any individual or agency should register with the GMC before putting up a hoarding, which has a validity period of one year and needs to be renewed after paying a fee. Once the billboards are put up, agencies hardly care to renew them,” said the official.

A systematic advertising policy will also help beautify the city. Under the new system, an individual or agency will have to take unipoles on rent from the GMC. “If unipoles are introduced in the city, we will place them in a systematic manner. At present, billboards or hoardings are placed randomly by advertising agencies. When unipoles are installed, outdoor advertisements can be placed only on them,” he said.