After the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) sent a list of 57 illegal billboards on its land to the BMC, the ex-BJP MP from North East seat on Monday filed a police complaint against the alleged 'nexus' of MHADA, civic officials and advertising firms. He sought action against the cohort for colluding to erect hoardings in brazen violation of norms.
Amid gusty winds and unseasonal rains on May 13, a huge billboard crashed near a petrol pump in Ghatkopar, killing 17 and injuring 75. The tragedy has turned the spotlight on the illegalities in the installation of hoardings across the city. In his complaint, the BJP leader has named 17 advertising companies, which erected hoardings on the MHADA land without permission or stability certificates.
Around 4,000 illegal hoardings are erected on lands owned by the public works department, Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority and in the BMC's jurisdiction, alleged the leader. The former parliamentarian sought to know how these illegal hoardings were allowed to be installed on the MHADA land. An FIR should be registered against the civic and MHADA officials concerned as well as hoarding companies, he demanded.
Meanwhile, in its letter sent to the BMC last week, MHADA has asked the civic authorities to pull down the illegal hoardings on its land within three days and also cancel the licenses of the advertising firms concerned. As per civic officials, they will ask MHADA to remove such illegal hoardings.
The BMC had prepared a list of 45 oversized hoardings on the Government Railway Police as well as railway premises. Of them, two collapsed, while eight boards on Tilak Bridge in Dadar and six in Ghatkopar were removed by the civic body. However, no action has been taken yet on the remaining 29 hoardings as the railways argue that it has permitted them as per norms.
