Cost of laying down the law

The intentions of the NOIDA authority were noble: to bring down illegal hoardings that are a public nuisance and eyesore. But it has come at a steep price

In these inflationary times, like everything else, the rates of advertisements have skyrocketed. Apparently, so have the costs of taking them down. In an attempt to flush out the illegal hoarding mafia operating in NOIDA, the authorities organised a demolition drive that began on February 26 and was carried out in eight sectors.

But what came as a shock to everyone concerned was a bill of eighty thousand one hundred rupees that the authorities received after a few days. The costs incurred were not due to the physical activity involved in the drive but because of the video recording of the whole demolition process.

A senior officer with the NOIDA authority said the cost of video recording was abnormally high and that eighty thousand rupees to record the demolition drive was beyond all expectations.

After the drive against illegal mobile towers, the NOIDA authority shifted focus towards the hoarding mafia. Inspired by similar policies of the MCD, the NOIDA authority issued a notice to all concerned companies on February 5 to start implementing the rules and norms for placement and size of hoardings within 15 days.

Only four parties deposited their applications giving details of the rate charts, placement and size of the hoardings-- Great India Place mall, SUB mall, Shopprix mall and Ocean plaza. No other company came forward.

Under the supervision of Shri Deep Chand from the NOIDA authority, nine different teams began a drive in eight different areas of NOIDA. On an average 250 hoardings were brought down everyday and the entire drive was video recorded. This was a first of its kind initiative by the NOIDA authority. And it has come with a hefty price tag.