Ranchi municipal body swoops down on hoardings, industry calls move arbitrary

Ranchi Municipal Corporation is the latest to join the drive against unauthorised hoardings. After raising the tax by 2,000 per cent in the last six years, Ranchi Municipal Corporation is set to enforce the bylaws made in 2016 that directs them to remove hoardings that are within 100 meters of every roundabout in the city.

Reacting to the mandate, a leading media owner from the city said, “Ranchi is a small city comprising only about 48 km in total size. If we have to follow this abrupt mandate, we will be left with no business. Also, if they are allowing overhead signages, gantries, pole kiosks, etc, how can hoarding only be the hindrance to traffic safety?”

The Municipal Corporation earlier revised their tax system by raising tax from Rs 1.5 to Rs 15 per square foot in 2011 which was further revised to Rs 60 in 2016 marking an almost 2,000 times hike. Jharkhand State Outdoor Advertisers Association is already fighting a case with the Municipal Corporation on the same in the High Court.

Rajib Chatterjee, President, Jharkhand State Outdoor Advertisers Association and Chairman of Indoor Outdoor Sub Committee of Federation of Jharkhand Chamber of Commerce, told Media4Growth, “More than 10,000 people in the state are associated with the business of outdoor. We understand that clutter must be minimised but random removal is not possible. Also, we demand clarifications on which part of amendments are being implemented here and why did bylaws made in last year take so long to be implemented. You just can’t call hoardings that have been paid tax for so long illegal!”