The move comes after The Telegraph carried a report - "Hoardings falls to rise again" - in its December 27, 2016, edition, in which it described how the illegal billboards (below), which werepulled down earlier, had reappeared a month later on Monday.
In November, the municipal corporation decided to pull down illegal hoarding that dotted the skyline across the city. The officials had started the drive from the busy Rajmahal Square, but the hoardings reappeared a month later.
However, after The Telegraph reported on the issue, on Tuesday a team comprising officials of both Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) removed the rooftop hoardings that were posing a threat to commuters and motorists.
"We have acted on the request of the city municipal corporation and had successfully pulled down the rooftop hoardings from Rajmahal to Master Canteen squares. We have removed 15 such hoardings on Tuesday in collaboration of the BMC officials. The drive will continue," said BDA liaison officer Subhransu Mohanty, who supervised the drive.
Civic body sources said there was a plan to conduct a feasibility survey about the illegal hoardings in the city following which the remaining billboards would be removed in a phased manner. "We are going to be stricter this time and after the identification of the sites, the removal drive will be conducted in tune with the guidelines of the Supreme Court," said BMC additional commissioner Alok Kar.
According to Supreme Court guidelines, advertisements, except those in public interest, that distract commuters are not permitted on roads. "If the administrators want to retain the beauty of the city, they should remove the illegal hoardings immediately," said Unit III resident Arindam Mishra.
Mayor Ananta Narayan Jena said that he had issued strict instructions to civic officials to remove illegal hoardings till the goal of road safety was achieved. "We will issue notices to those who have put up hoardings illegally and charge them the cost of removal. If they don't follow the directives, a heavy fine will be imposed," said Jena.
Text: Sandeep Mishra
Pictures: Ashwinee Pati
