The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has taken action against an illegal hoarding structure at Alka Talkies Chowk following complaints from residents, officials said on Wednesday.
Additional Municipal Commissioner Prithviraj BP said, "The PMC had earlier taken action against the hoarding, but it was found that the hoarding was erected again. Now, we have taken down the structure."
The Free Press Journal on Monday reported that the hoarding, originally composed of three separate billboards, was merged into a single large structure. Last Friday, when municipal officials visited the site to inspect permissions, they were reportedly chased away. A video of the incident, showing officials being forcefully pushed back even in the presence of police, had surfaced.
Earlier, following a media report exposing the violation of hoarding regulations, the then municipal commissioner intervened, banning advertisements on the hoarding and suspending three employees of the Kasba-Vishrambagh regional office. This action was taken in February 2023, leading to the removal of the hoarding as per the court's directive.
Last year, after the court orders, PMC officials removed the hoarding structure. However, the owner of the hoarding, who is related to a political party, again placed three hoardings on the structure and obstructed civic officials from carrying out their duties.
