COIMBATORE: Social activists and motorists in Coimbatore have criticised the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) for their 'double standard' in regulating advertisement hoardings across the city. While the civic body has been engaged in a legal tussle with Southern Railways over banners on Brooke Bond Road, activists point out that the CCMC has turned a blind eye to similar banners alongside flyovers within its own jurisdiction.
The controversy began when Southern Railways installed multiple advertisement hoardings along the railway track parallel to Dr Krishnasamy Road (also known as Brooke Bond Road) in Ward 70. The banners, placed close to each other, were stated as distracting to motorists and raised serious safety concerns.
Acting on complaints from the public, the CCMC objected to the banners, arguing that the railways had not sought proper permission or paid fees for installing advertisements facing a busy city road. Southern Railways, under the Salem Division, filed a petition in the Madras High Court seeking exemption from CCMC regulations, claiming the hoardings were on their land. However, the court dismissed the plea and upheld CCMC's authority, following which the civic body removed as many as 53 banners.
The case took another turn when advertisers who had contracts with the railways filed an appeal and obtained a stay order, resulting in the reinstallation of banners on the same stretch. The CCMC, in response, continues to fight the matter in court.
However, while it takes a hard stance against the railways, the civic body itself is facing flak for allowing a series of advertisement hoardings along the Kavundampalayam Flyover on Mettupalayam Road and the Uppilipalayam Flyover near Good Shed Road. Activists allege these hoardings are also distracting and question how the civic body allowed them while opposing the railways' banners.
Speaking to TNIE, CCMC Commissioner M Sivaguru Prabakaran said, "We are not against the railways installing hoardings. But they must get permission and pay the required fees. These hoardings face city roads and are placed too close together, violating regulations. As for the Kavundampalayam Flyover, only a few hoardings were approved. Illegal ones have already been removed."
"Whether it is a private advertiser, the railways, or the corporation, the rules must be the same. You cannot call out one agency and permit another on the same stretch. These double standards put public safety at risk," said social activist S Vivin Saravan.
Activists are now urging the CCMC to conduct a city-wide audit of all advertisement hoardings and ensure uniform regulation to avoid further legal wrangles and safety hazards.