Against the backdrop of the hoarding collapse in Ghatkopar in Mumbai, the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation (CSMC) administration has decided to conduct a structural audit of all the hoardings in the city. There are more than 400 hoardings in the city, and around 40 of them have been erected without permission. The Outdoor Advertisers Association officials said on Friday that the corporation should take stern action in case of any breach of norms.
After the incident in Ghatkopar, the municipal corporation and the local self-governing bodies in various cities have taken a firm stand against the hoarding agencies. Many municipal corporations and councils have directed the agencies to remove the hoardings within 24 hours.
The officials of the association said that the hoardings erected in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar are legal and that the corporation has granted permission for them. After the Ghatkopar incident, CSMC has decided to conduct a stability and structural audit of the hoardings along the roads and on the buildings.
450 hoardings in the city
Around 18 agencies have erected more than 450 hoardings in the city. Most of the hoardings have been erected on the buildings. The agencies provide structural stability certificates to the corporation every three years. If any accident occurs after the collapse of a hoarding, the entire responsibility lies on the shoulders of the agency. The corporation should take action if any rules were breached during the erection of the hoardings, the officials said.
The officials also mentioned that the hoardings do not collapse in case of stormy winds but bend to around 10 degrees. Tin sheets are put on the hoardings, due to which the wind does not pass through them. However, some political leaders erect illegal hoardings without taking any prior permission. The workers who erect the hoardings are skilled, and all technical procedures are followed.
Habib Shaikh, Anil Khandalkar, Bhavesh Saraf, Chandrakumar Malani, Ashish Chaterjee, and others were present during the press conference.
